


Extraordinary

by OhMyNeuer



Category: Football - Fandom, Football RPF, Soccer - Fandom, bayern munich - Fandom, fc bayern - Fandom, germany - Fandom, manuel neuer - Fandom
Genre: F/M, It has a bit of reference to some book series including Harry Potter, Setting is between 2018 and further in the future
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-10
Updated: 2016-07-25
Packaged: 2018-05-13 00:59:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 32,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5688478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OhMyNeuer/pseuds/OhMyNeuer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Belinda is an ordinary girl from the East with low self-esteem. Her hope of meeting her idol, Manuel Neuer, comes true just when she thought it got shattered. And,that experience changes her life forever.</p><p>(For best reading experience,this story is written in the 1st point of view so you can be the main character.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: Ordinary Girl

**Author's Note:**

> This story is continuous,so I'll post more chapters every now and then.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay,so this prologue tells you the background of a simple girl who finally goes to Munich and later on becomes Manuel Neuer's girlfriend on the next chapters (spoiler,I know.) But there's some cute scenes on the next chapters. Trust me,you'll enjoy it.

_(Okay,this part of the story might be boring to you, but I wanna show you how ordinary I am,so you don't think that I'm a bloody rich kid who brags a lot and paid Manuel Neuer a zillion dollars to be his girlfriend. )_

    First of all,let me introduce myself. My name is Belinda and I'm just an ordinary girl living an ordinary life,just like most of you. Let me warn you: I'm _not_ a model material,even though I'm pretty tall compared to others. My hair is black and my eyes are dark brown. I live in a small apartment in Abu Dhabi,along with my family of 6 members in total. Doing some dumb chores,getting screamed at by parents,studying my _butt_ off for a high GPA and to get a 5 on my AP Sciences are just my everyday thing. But that's not it. I'm the only die-hard football fan in the family. Yes,and I'm a _girl_. _Don't tell me that girls can't be a football fan and all they do is fangirl on football players_. Let me prove you wrong. I'm a key striker in my school's football team. So yes, I can _obviously_ play football. Also,I spend quite a few hours every day trying to catch up with all the football news and watching football matches. I want to learn how the professionals play football,so I can become like one someday.

    My favorite team is Bayern Munich and my favorite player is Manuel Neuer. Now you might think, _You mean Manuel Neuer the goalie? Why don't you like a striker?_ Alright,let me tell you this (if you don't know this already) : He's not just your ordinary type of goalkeeper, he's _special_. He can play anywhere: defense,midfield,forward,you name it.Trust me when I say this,because I watch every single one of his matches. He has world-class skills that barely any other goalkeepers have. He has God-level reflexes,and he can save anything from ball shots to your grades. And,he's a great person off the pitch as well. Honest,intelligent,down-to earth,and reliable are just few of his good characteristics. If I have to list all of them, it would take forever,and that's _not_ the point of why I'm writing this story. His flawless appearance,to be honest, is just a plus quality to me.So do _not_ start thinking that I love him only because he's hot.

   Anyways,I've been a fan of him for quite a couple of years now. Unfortunately,though, I've never ever met him. Which really sucks,considering that he has been my idol for ages. He came to Abu Dhabi and Dubai already,but only God knew where exactly he was. I mean, Abu Dhabi is _freaking_ huge,let alone Dubai. Do you expect me to go all around the city and meet him that easily? No, _duh._ So yeah,I'm a hella unfortunate fan. _Do you still think I'm not unlucky enough?_ Right. Compare me to others who aren't really his fans that accidentally meet him on a random street and get a chance to take selfies with him and get his autograph. (Long sentence right there.) Ugh,I'm jealous of them. I can't go to Munich,either,because I don't have enough money to buy such an expensive ticket myself. I'm not gonna go around begging my parents for _that_ amount of money just to meet a _random_ guy,as my parents call him. I don't even have money to buy enough jerseys. I only have two jerseys,both with Neuer's name on them : Green German National Team one with golden crest and 4 stars on it and the blue Bayern one with golden crest on it as well. In conclusion, _what the heck should I give to get a tiny chance to meet Manuel Neuer?_ I'd give anything,to be honest. But God says _noooooo...._

   I don't give up on trying to show Manu (that's his nickname) that I exist,though. I still post pictures of him on twitter daily and tag him to show how much of a fan I am. I even send letters to him via facebook to show that I care about him. Man,he's damn lucky to have a considerate fan like me. God should _really_ get me to talk to Manu face to face. He just _have_ to,after all these efforts I made for him. _Oh God,just give me a bloody chance...._ Seriously,I pray to God daily,wishing that I would meet Manu someday. I wasn't _even_ asking to be his wife,because I know that's impossible. But after forever, I just give up on wishing for that to happen because I know God would never listen to me,and my biggest dream would never come true.

   Anyways, I was sulking about that at the corner of my room when a letter appeared just below the door. I grabbed it and gasped.

A letter from Technische Universität München (or Technical University of Munich ). _Holy cow,this might be something._

   Now you might ask, _how the hell did I get that letter?_ When I was searching for universities to apply to, I was choosing Technical University of Munich as one of the options and applied there. Who doesn't want an opportunity to study and live in Munich,especially when you are a Bayern fan,and your favorite players,Sabener Street,and Allianz Arena are in the same city that you're gonna live in? I sent application forms,report cards,and other _junk_ (I love using that word,don't mind about it) to apply there. And the university will tell you whether you get accepted or not by sending a letter. Yes, _all the way from Munich._ It's crazy,I know. But now I had the letter in my hand.

I ripped the envelope and opened the letter as fast as I could,with my heart thumping 100000 miles per second,eager to see the result.

"NNOOOOOOO WAAAAYYY!! I FU- I mean, I FREAKING GOT ACCEPTED!!!AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!"

I started screaming,jumping and running all around the apartment like a madwoman.

My family members started coming out of their rooms.

"wHAT?"

"Are you serious?"

"You're joking."

"No waaaaaaaaaay."

"Ohmygodlemmeseeit!"My mom snatched the letter away from my hands and read it. My dad quickly stood beside my mom to read it as well. They both screamed.

"This is real!"

"I know!"

"Ohhhh we're so proud of you!" Both of my parents hugged, or, to be exact, _squeezed the life out of me._ On the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of my sisters murmuring to each other. Maybe they were just jealous of the attention and the hug my parents finally gave me. _Hahaha,suck it up,kids._

"Whoa whoa,chill right there." I said as I struggled to wriggle away from the embrace. _Man, I'm going to die if they hold on to me any longer._ They finally released me. _Phew._ And started to plant kisses on my cheek. _Gross._ They'd never even done this to me before. _Not now,parents. Not now._ I bolted to my parents' bedroom and called Tania,my pen-pal who lives in Munich for years .She was applying to the same university.

"Yo,Tania."

"Omg BEEELL I GOT ACCEPTED!"

" SAAAAME!!"

"HOLY CRAP THIS IS AWESOME!"

"AAAAHHHHH!!!"

Both of us were screaming on our phones that it was actually a miracle our ears were still intact.

"Okay,calm down,will we?"

"Bel,you gotta come to Munich,like,right now."

"I'll come ASAP."

"You better. "

"I promise."

"Can't wait! Bye! Muah!"

I kissed the phone and hung up as I prepared for my ordinary life to turn _extraordinary._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like it,leave kudos (click the heart thingy) on it . Also feel free to comment on my fic.  
> I'm done with chapter 2 of this story as well.Just click the next chapter button at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!


	2. How I met Manuel Neuer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Belinda has finally arrived to Munich and met Manu in the most ordinary way. But,it's just the beginning of her extraordinary life.......

Somehow, I eventually got to Munich.That meant one part of my dream had come true,alright. _God is listening,finally._

_"RINGGGGGG!"_

"Oh no,not again." I complained as my arm stretched to turn off the ringing alarm.

I heard the creaking sound of the opening curtain.The sun was shining so bright that my eyes were forced to open themselves.

"Wake up!" Tania yelled and threw her pillow at me. It hit my face so hard it hurt.

"Hmmmmmm..?????" My eyes were still half-open.I felt like going straight back to sleep.

"Are you going to open tr-"

I sat up right away,my head still throbbing with pain. Yeah,I didn't get enough sleep last night. _How am I supposed to get enough sleep when I just came back from the Munich tour at 3 A.M.?_

"Oh crap,I almost forgot about that!" My eyes opened almost immediately.

_How did I even forget about the plan to watch my Bayern boys train right in front of us? I've been waiting for this all my life! How could I be so dumb and just forget it like that?_

"Dammit,are we late?" I started to panic.

"No,I guess."

"You guess?"

Not wanting to be late to open training session,I decided to sprint to the bathroom immediately. I need to take a shower like, _right now_. I wasn't going to open training session with a disgusting smell of sweat from the Munich tour.

Tania screamed behind me, "I wanna go first!"

"Too late,girl!" I laughed as I locked the bathroom door.

   After taking a shower, I dressed up. Usually girls take 372837 years to dress up because they take a lot of time choosing their outfit,doing their hair,and putting layers and layers of makeup. Even though I'm a girl,my definition of dressing up is simple,really : Just put on a pair of jeans ,T-shirt ,a few accessories to match the outfit (a watch,for example) ,and a pair of sneakers. _That's it?_ Yep,that's it. No makeup and no hairdo equals no fuss equals no waste of time and energy. I still applied my definition of dressing up even for open training session. The only difference was that this time I put on my blue Bayern jersey (with Manu's name and number on the back,of course,with golden crest in the front middle), instead of a plain T-Shirt.

   People says you have to look good when you wanna see a guy. But I don't really care about that right now because it's not like I'm actually going on a date. It's not like the players are gonna pay attention (let alone _get attracted_ ) to me. All of them have extraordinary wives or girlfriends,so why would they waste their time staring at an ordinary girl? I just want to look at my Bayern boys up close, _not_ the opposite.

"Damn,you look gorgeous." Tania praised me as she walked out of the bathroom,wearing nothing but her pink bathrobe.

"Oh,thank you."

"Manu will absolutely love your outfit!"

 _Manu will absolutely love my outfit. Whoa. Manu._ The fact sank deeply into me. _Yeah,I'm gonna meet Manuel Neuer,or at least watch him train live in front of my very own eyes without a screen in between,which means that my biggest wish is about to come true._

_No way. I. have.no.chill._

I started to freak out. Do I look pretty enough, now that I had come to realize that Manu is gonna be in open training session as well? Looking at the tall mirror,I could only see a simple,regular girl from the East. I let out a huge sigh.

"What's up?" Tania's forehead wrinkled.

"Nothing." I lied.

"Don't lie to me."

Something caught my eyes -Tania's makeup bag,lying on the corner of the table. _Hmm_.

"May I borrow your makeup bag for a sec?"

"Sure. Don't even ask. You can use it,by the way."

"Thanks."

"No probs."

_Let's see. Foundation ? Nope. Mascara? Nein. Eye pencil? Nah. Fake eyelashes? Big No No. Red lipstick? Uh-uh. Face powder? Yep. Pink blush-on ? Why not?_

I took the lipstick,face powder, and blush-on out the bag and turned into the mirror.

"D'you need some help?" Tania offered. She was wearing a red Bayern jersey (with Mario Goetze's name and number on the back,with the golden crest in the front middle), black leggings, Bayern scarf neatly tied around her neck,and red sneakers. Strands of her wavy blond hair were put neatly on her right shoulder. Her blue eyes were shining in front of the mirror. In fact,her _whole face_ was shining. And that was how she looked without makeup. _It sucks having a friend who is 10 times prettier than you,but at least she's a nice person._

"Uh,sure."

"Okay,look at me. Don't move."

She started putting on the powder gently on my face,then the blush on my cheeks,then the lipstick on my lips.

"Open your mouth,now." She said as she dabbed the lipstick on my lips. "Okay,now close it. Done.Open your eyes and look into the mirror.You look stunning."

What I saw on the mirror was ,like, _a whole different person. Is that even me?_ I was staring at my reflection in awe. _Wow. Okay. I look...nice. For the first time in my life._

"Th-thank you,friend. This is amazing."

"That's what friends are for."

Minutes later, Tania finished putting on her makeup and we were ready to go. I slumped my backpack on my shoulder and went out of the room along with her.

As expected,it was a beautiful sunny day. Mild breeze brushed on my face the second we got out of our dorm.The boys certainly would enjoy this weather.

Tania told me that we would get to Sabener Street by an underground train. She held the tickets in her hand.

"An underground train?"

"Yep. It's my favorite public transportation.I ride this baby almost every single day. Have you ever been in one?"

"Nah. There's one in Dubai,called an underground metro. But,I've never even been on it because we drive by car all the time.

"Oh."

"At what time will the train arrive?"

"The train should be arrived by...now."

The train looked almost like the one I saw in Dubai,with the same shape,size and color (which was blue and silver as well.)

We jumped right on the train.Unsurprisingly,it wasn't that crowded, so both of us found seats quite easily. Then,something strange happened.

I noticed Manu was sitting in front row,wearing a black cap and Red Bayern training kit.

_Why on earth is he here?_

I decided to take a risk and made a run to the front. I knew this was a _really bad_ idea,considering the fact that the train was actually moving quite fast, but I did it anyway. I got to the front when suddenly Manu stood up right in front of me. The next thing I knew,I lost my balance and fell on top of Man-

"Wake up,wake up!" Tania patted my shoulder to wake me up.

I jumped and hit my head on the roof of the train. "Ouch!"

Then I realized it was all a dream. _Thanks for ruining it,Tania._ I was right on top of Manuel Peter Neuer, and if she hadn't woken me up, I would've started doing some _really_ unholy things to him. _Ugh,I missed that golden chance._

_Okay,back to Earth,Belinda.._

"Sorry.You okay?"

"Uh..not really." My head was spinning as I could barely make out the shape of the people who was glaring at me.

"Come on, we've arrived!"

We strolled out of the underground station,and here we were,in Sabener Street.I couldn't spot any sign of the FC Bayern headquarters anywhere,though.

Finally Tania spoke up, "We gotta walk."

"Walk? How far?"

"It's only 5 minutes from here."

After 5 minutes,we'd finally arrived at our destination. It seemed like we weren't the first fans to arrive today. I noticed a whole crowd of fans hanging out in front of the fan shop and on their way to the training ground.

We decided to saunter to the training ground directly and avoided the crowd.

I gasped as the stunning view of the training ground came before my eyes. And,it wasn't just the wide field that stunned me. _There were..Bayern players in there._

There he was, Manuel Neuer,the love of my life, standing tall in front of the net and waiting for the ball to come at him.

 _Oh. My. God_. I felt like melting on the spot. He looked even more handsome than I'd ever seen him in pictures. _Damnnnnnnnnnn it._

"Manuel..." I squeaked. My eyes started to get really watery. I was here,watching Manuel Neuer train up close.

_This couldn't get any better. Or could it?_

After what seemed like _years_ of gawking and recording videos of Bayern players, the training was officially over. The men began to come out of the field and signed some autographs on their way to the building.

Then, I noticed Manu again. I dashed at him as quickly as I could and blocked the way in front of him.

_What was I thinking?_

"Uh...hello."

Manu smiled at me. "Hey." _That voice is so sexy.._

 _Manuel Neuer just smiled at me._ My body was shaking. _Keep yourself together,Belinda. You can do this. Ask him for his autograph and give him your phone, so he can take a selfie with you._

_Where's Tania when I need her?_

"I'm- uh, Belinda. Nice to meet you. Can- can I have your autograph? " I stuttered as I give the picture of Manu,along with the pen,to the person himself.

"There you go." He smiled,again. He was speaking _perfect_ English to me.

"Um,can we take a selfie,please?"I said as I handed my phone to him.

"Sure."

He handed the phone back to me and beamed again. I expected him to go to the building right away,now that I didn't ask him to do any more favor,but he just stood there.

"Nice shirt,by the way."

_Did Manu just compliment me?_

"Yeah,uh,I bought it in the Champions League store in Abu Dhabi."

"Abu Dhabi? Do you live there?"

"I lived there for a couple of years,and I just moved here because,you know...I got accepted in a university here."

"It's beautiful there. So,you're a student?"

"Yeah."

"In which university?"

"Technical University of Munich."

"Whoa,that's the best university in here. You're certainly a smart girl." Manu looked impressed and grinned for a _zillionth_ time.

_Did Manu just praise me again,or did my ears go wild?_

I started to lose my nervousness and talk to him as if he was my friend. Which was weird,because usually it takes me quite a lot of time to get used to talk to somebody.Whatever _spell_ Manu put on me,it  _worked._

"Yeah,I got a perfect 5 on all the five AP examinations I took.Also,I got the highest GPA in the whole class." I wanted to laugh at myself as I said it,because I just _bragged_ at the best goalkeeper in the world,who happened to be intelligent as well.

"That's outstanding."He clapped his hands a bit,still smiling.

"Thanks."

"Would you mind if you wait here for a couple of minutes ? I wanna change and get my bag,and then we can talk some more."

 _What? He wants to talk to me some more?_ I don't know what's going on in his right mind right now. But I listened to him anyway and stood beside the entrance door.

After 2 minutes,I became absolutely restless. I couldn't just stand here. _People are gonna think I'm a spy or something._ _Plus,I should search for Tania._ _Where is she? God,help me..._

I imagined myself getting lost in Munich and shuddered at the thought.

Players that were left outside started to prance toward me,or _the door_ ,I mean. Instead of walking around aimlessly,I decided to take pics with a few of them. After all of them had gone inside,I skipped back to the place that Manu had told me to wait in.

Out of nowhere, Manu popped up,ready to go. He was wearing a... _suit? No wonder that took him a long time to dress up. Where is he going? Hmm.. I'm curious._

"Do you wanna have a dinner with me tonight?"

I peered around me. There was nobody else except both of us. _But does it mean...?_ To be on the safe side, I didn't answer.

Manu repeated the question again, "Do you wanna have a dinner with me tonight?

Well,that was quick. _Manu is asking me to have a dinner? With him? Next time I'll get my ears checked._

_How about Tania? She'll be worried sick for me. But if she remembers I exist,I would've heard her screaming my name by now. Oh well,I'll just call her later._

"Okay,why not?"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos and comment on my fic!  
> I'm done with chapter 3 of this story as well.Just click the next chapter button at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!


	3. Dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Manu takes Belinda to have a dinner with him,and she still doesn't know what he's up to. He's acting even more unusual as he drops more hints about his feelings for her.

   We were at the garden part of a restaurant in Munich. The tiny lanterns hanging on the trees cast a warm ,yellowish glow. The magnificent melody of a piano flew to my ears as it welcomed the diners. Lots of stars were twinkling in the sky which exactly represented my feelings at that time. Stunned by the beautiful view, I almost forgot who was sitting in front of me.

   Here he was, wearing a black suit with a white shirt and a red tie under it. His hair was extremely tidy, as usual. He didn't look like he was sweaty from today's training at all. It was as if he knew he was going to have a dinner with a girl tonight . His face glowed under the lantern. And the sweet smell of his perfume... _oh, it smelled like heaven_. _Ugh,I should've worn a dress._ He looked so neat while I was still dressed in his sticky number 1 jersey and a pair of old plain blue jeans. Watching the other ladies with gorgeous hair and beautiful dresses, I felt like I don't belong here. 

"Um, Mr.Neuer, I-" I got up.

"Call me Manu. It's okay. Sit down." He smiled.

"Manu, I have to go- to the toilet."

"Oh, okay then."

I quickly rushed to the toilet .I couldn't have dinner with such a special person when I look so untidy. I put on Tania's makeup,which accidentally was in my bag, and my favorite perfume. Soon, the smell of orchids was in the air. _Now I'm ready._

Bouncing back to the table,he greeted me with a grin.I greeted back nervously and sat.We didn't talk to each other for a while, but I noticed that he was still beaming at me.

Finally he spoke. "You look..breathtaking."

 _Who is he talking to? Oh. Me. Okay._  
I had no idea how to respond, so I simply replied, "Um,thanks." as I touched my warm,red cheeks.

The waiter arrived at our table and asked something in German,which I understood perfectly. In a second,the waiter realized who he was talking to.

"Manuel Neuer?" 

"Ja."

"What are you ordering?"

It took me a while to realize that Manu was asking me. _I can't believe I'm still not used to "Manuel Neuer is talking to me." game. (even though deep in my heart I'm afraid that it's not a game at all. It's real. All of them.)_

I scratched my head. _What do I like?_ "Oh,I don't know.Maybe pasta?" 

"Pasta? Oh,I like pasta as well! What kind of pasta? Read the menu,please."

I reluctantly read the menu. "Spaghetti with Bechamel sauce,please."

The waiter wrote my order and walked away.

"Um,Manu,what exactly are you ordering?"

"Can we share the food,if you don't mind?"

I stared at him. _Are you kidding me?_

"Yeah,sure."

_Oh God,we're both hungry. If we share,Manu would eat very little because I know Manu would be really kind and give most of the food to me. At the same time, I don't want to grant him tiny amount of food.No way.Well,I'm just gonna let him devour the whole thing._

Manu broke the silence again. "Do you have a boyfriend?"

I almost choked on the water I just drank seconds ago.

_Okay,Belinda. Take a deep breath. Think straight. Don't think that Manu is gonna be your boyfriend if you tell him that you don't have one,which is the truth. Don't hope too much. Just...just calm down and answer the question casually. One,two...._

"No,I've never had one."

Manu looked shocked."Wow,how come a girl so stunning like you doesn't have a boyfriend?"

I was going to say something,but all that came out was "Uh.." My cheeks had undoubtedly turned into tomatoes.

To my relief,he chose to change the subject."So,how was today's Bayern training,in your opinion?"

"It was-" I struggled to find the right word. "Superduperamazing!"

"Glad you loved it. How long have you been a Bayern fan?"

"Ages.I've been dreaming to meet you-" I blurted out.  
_Crap.I shouldn't have said that. Too late now_.  The only choice I had was to continue the sentence."And other Bayern players.Also,I want to have a VIP tour around Allianz Arena,and,um,yeah."

His eyes twinkled a little,as if he was waiting for this all along.

"I can give you a tour of Allianz Arena,if you want."

_I swear to God if I don't get my ears checked ASAP....._

My mouth opened against my will. "Yes,I would love that!"

I said it so loud that I could feel people's blazing glares at me. _Stop getting so excited,will you?_ _Take a chill pill,Bel._

"Okay,good then."

The waiter came with a plate of spaghetti. This time, he brought a phone to take a selfie with Manu. He thanked Manu and swaggered away with pride.

I stared at the plate instead of consuming it. "Manu,you may start eating."

"I'm not going to start if you don't start."

_I knew it. Manu,just freaking eat it._

"Can we just,like,start together?"

"Sure."

   Both of our forks dug the spaghetti at the same time. Then,Manu did the last thing I expected. He took a strand of spaghetti,put it in his mouth,and slurped it. He kept slurping it until I realized that the other end of the spaghetti strand was right in my mouth.Now that I realized what was going to happen, I had to make a choice.

_You just can't do this in public._

But the devilish part of me ordered, _Slurp the spaghetti,quick! This is your chance!_

The only thing that was between our lips was the spaghetti strand.We shared the same breath. I couldn't take this anymore.I gazed at his baby blue eyes.  _I want him,and I'm going to get him._

His lips were warm and tender.Hot sensation rushed through my body like burning fire, filling every inch of my body with energy. I've never experienced this before.I kissed harder.

Realizing that we did this in public,I pulled away almost immediately.

"Oh my God,I'm so sorry. I didn't m-"

"No need to apologise."

He kissed me back. I've never felt so alive.

I whispered,"Manu,please."

"Shh." He cracked up. "Well,that was..fun."

We ended up laughing for minutes.

"Hey,do you want to come to my apartment? I know you're curious to know how it looks like,am I right?"

I gazed at the dark sky and checked my phone. No calls from Tania. Good.

"Yes."

"Come on."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos and comments on my fic :)  
> I'm done with chapter 4 of this story as well.Just click the next chapter button at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!


	4. Take Me Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bel finds out the truth about Manu's feelings,which includes a shocker.

Even in my wildest dreams about Manu,I had never ever expected myself to be in his apartment,but here I was.

His apartment was not exactly huge,but it was clean and comfortable to live in.Manuel,as I expected,is an organized person.There wasn't a single dirt on the table,sofas,nor on the floor.His pictures at the World Cup final and his certificates were pinned to one side of the living room.Lots of trophies-his trophies,obviously- and his medals were neatly put in the shelf next to the television. Three cream-colored sofas and a small table were in front of it. I didn't think that a World Champion's living space to be this simple and modest.

"Wow,your apartment is so...comfy. No wonder you live here for ages."

"Yeah.Let's go to the bedroom."

We strolled past an empty but bright enough hall,and entered his bedroom. 

It was as cozy as the loving room,which shouldn't have surprised me,at least _not_ after I saw the living room. There was a bed fit for two ,a black night table with a white night lamp  on one side,and a medium-sized wardrobe on the other. As we got in, he locked the door behind us. _  
_

_What's going on?_

His shirt was off,and his abs were showing. _  
_

_Dear Lord._

_He took off his pants. OMG,his underwear!  no nO NO._

He walked slowly toward me and pinned me against a wall. He kissed me so hard my lips were going to fall off. I moaned.

"Oh my God,Manuel." _This turns me on so much!_

Out of nowhere,the lights turned off.Only the candle in the corner of the room still burned dimly.

"I want your love." He whispered gently to my ear.

I couldn't stop groaning as he stripped me to my underwear while pecking every single inch of my body,beginning from the lips and moving gradually to my chest and to my thighs.

"Please,Manuel,I want more."

The next thing I knew,I got thrown across the bed. I breathed hard,still shocked from the blow.  
  
For a second, I perceived what was really going on. _Wild Manuel Neuer mode on. Time to have some fun._

My inner devil rose right from hell. "Come and get me,beast."

There was no turning back.

                                                          ************************************************  

I felt his lips pressed on my forehead,followed by a soft brush to my hair.

"Hmm..Manuel,please."

I recognized the tall,muscular and shirtless figure of him standing beside me,grinning. And, I was still on the bed naked except for the blanket that covered me.

"Good morning,sweetheart. Wanna do some more?"

"Um,not now,thanks. I don't think I can walk right now."

"That's fine. What's your favorite position?"

I knew exactly what he meant, but instead I replied,

"Goalkeeper."

Manu giggled. He must have thought I was fooling around with him.

"Firstly,because I'm in love with a goalie.Secondly,I like the idea that the best goalkeeper in the world,who just became a striker last night, scored on me,aka the worst goalkeeper in the world."

"Good one,good one.You _really_ are witty." He guffawed so much that he had to settle down on a chair to keep him from falling over his own weight. "That was the best one,last night. I'm not even going to lie.We found the right rhythm. In and out,in and out...Nice and steady.And your-"

"Manu,stop making me wet."

"You're the one who makes me wet. I still can't believe that you never have a boyfriend."

"That's because no one likes a common girl like me."  
  
" _Jesus_ ,Belinda,you're precious. You are the girl that I have been looking all my life,I'm sure of it now. You are like none other. When I first met you,I was like, _holy moly, this is my girl._  It's not only because of your intelligence, your beauty or your personality.It's the aura that you have when you are close to me. It's like..you're _special_. It's like... _you're meant to be mine_. I feel _different_ beside you.I feel more..like _myself_. It's like..this might sound a bit weird,but it's like..my soul is _complete_ when you're beside me."

There was a pause.

"That's why I asked you how long you've been my fan,and you confirmed my assumptions. You've been my fan for years,and you are not just an ordinary fan. I know that,Belinda. I know that you're the one who send me tons of messages,even ones full of critiques,on Facebook. I know that you're the one who posts my pics every single day on twitter.I know that you're _that_ Belinda. You think I don't read your messages and posts? I don't reply to them ,but I _do_  read them,Bel, I really do. When I read your messages I was like, _damn,this girl cares about me a lot._ I have to meet this girl someday.That's why I always try to do my best on the pitch.Why? Because I want to make not only regular fans proud of me,but also to make _you_  proud of me.I don't want to _ever_  disappoint you.I'm sorry I ever said I wanted to leave Bayern. I'm really sorry. I changed my mind now. I'll retire at Bayern.I'll do anything for you to... hold on to my heart and love me forever. I can't afford losing a fan like you. 

"Those messages are my motivation to improve. So,thank you for every single message that you sent. Because you made me who I am right now.Thank _goodness_ I succeeded on my mission to keep your heart. Yesterday was the best day of my life so far. That's when I got blessed with your presence. That's when I know I have my other half,who is sitting right across me at this minute. You're exceptional. If you aren't exceptional,I wouldn't have taken you to dinner and you wouldn't have been here in my room,chatting with me."

I opened my mouth,but nothing came out.None of us spoke a word for a long time.

"I think I know why do you think no one likes you. It's just because.....I'm the only person who's supposed to see the jewels in you."

I still didn't say anything. I wanted to let him open up about this as much as he possibly could.

Instead of keeping the silence between us,a question that had been bubbling in my head for a long time burst out of my mouth without warning. "But how about your ex? Kathrin and Nina?"

Manu put his head down and shook his head." I was wrong about them..I thought they were the ones I was looking for.But really,it's _you_  that I've been trying to find all along.I'm a hundred percent certain this time round. This might sound rather awkward,but would you like to be my girlfriend?"

I knew I shouldn't have been shocked to hear this,considering the truth that Manu just revealed to me. But I chuckled a bit at those words. I'm _far_ from perfect, and _everyone_ knows that. _I just want to wake up from this weird dream and come back to my miserable life._

How can Manu discover something unique in me that even _I_ haven't discovered? Manu just knows me from all the efforts I made to get noticed by him and from last night. _That's it. And now he thinks he knows me so well and wants me to be his girlfriend because I'm the perfect girl for him. What if I end up like Kathrin or Nina?_   _What if he's just...using me ?_

_Well,it's not like I'm going to say no to the offer._

"Of course,I'm honored."

We shared a quick and passionate kiss to make it official.

"From now on,you can stay in my apartment and leave your dorm.I'll drive you to university every day."

_Leave my dorm? I can't leave Tania alone. Plus,Tania and I have paid the rent price for the whole year._

"Sorry Manu,I..can't always stay in your apartment because I've already expended my money for the dorm. But I can _obviously_ sleep in your apartment once in a while."

"Oh." There was a bit of disappointment on his face,but he shrugged it off. "Okey-dokey."

I put my clothes on and called Tania. _Nice, 35 missed calls from her. I bet you anything that she would scream at me for "running away" from her._

"Hello?"

"BELINDA,WHERE IN THE UNIVERSE ARE YOU?! I'M WORRIED SICK!"

"Where are YOU?"

"I was in Sabener Street until 6 p.m. waiting for you! I asked pretty much everyone,including the players,about your whereabouts. Thomas Mueller recognized you,and informed me that you were going to dinner with Manuel Neuer." _  
_

_Gulp.I'm doomed. How did Thomas know-_

_Uh-oh._ Thomas is Manu's best friend,which means Manu had told Thomas everything already. For the first time ever,I didn't agree with this Neuller thing. 

 _Things are about to get complicated now. Whoops._  

"However,you didn't call me."

I could hear Tania's sigh on the phone."My phone's battery died,Bel.If it hadn't died,I would've called you right away. Now answer me,will you? Were you with Manuel Neuer?" _  
_

_Just tell the truth and..get over it_.

"I'm..I'm sorry,Tania,I'm at Manu's apartment right now."

"WHAT?! " She cackled. "I thought Thomas was freaking joking...And so _are_ you?"

"No.Why would I joke around?"

She was speechless for a while."And why the hell are you there? Did you just..no way."

"Yes,whatever you are going to say."

"Oh my God,you just spent the night at Manu's house! This can't be happening! What the-"

There was a minute of silence between us until she continued,

"Belinda, _WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!_ "

"I..I don't know,Tania. It just happened so fast.I couldn't resist."

Tania started to sound calm though I could tell that she had trouble processing the statement I made just now."Okay,okay.Wow.You are one lucky girl.I don't blame you for that. I mean he's hot,and his _thing_ must be-"

"Tania.." I interrupted the conversation before she described his accurate description in too much detail.

"Okay,come here now. And tell me everything."

"I will."

                                                    ************************************************

After Manu drove me back to my dorm,I told Tania everything,including Manu's honest confession and the fact that I am _now_ his girlfriend.

Her jaw dropped so low and her eyes seemed like they were gonna pop out.

"Your life is actually gonna change,Bel."

I nodded. "My gut feeling says yes." _  
_

_Y_ _ep. My whole life is already changing bit by bit ever since I met Manu for the first time._

_And it's going to keep changing for as long as my relationship with him stays. I'm scared for the possible extreme alteration that's gonna happen. I might lose Tania,or even my family. I don't know if they will ever approve our love affair. I'm afraid that this golden part of my life won't stay very long_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The details for the hot part of this chapter is kept with less details on purpose bc I know that underage people will read this whoops xD . As for the others, the imagination is up to you. *evil laugh*  
> Feel free to leave kudos or comment on the fic!  
> Chapter 5 has been posted so if you wish to continue reading,click on the "next page" button. Enjoy! :)


	5. Matchday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the Champions League Final in Allianz Arena,and Manu is going to give all he can to win it. At the same time,Bel has to finish the all the tasks before the match. Will the pressure make or break both of them?

_Months later.._

The bell rang. I dismissed myself and dashed past the university corridors to find the main door. I had a lot to do. On a usual matchday,I usually just clothed Bayern fan-style (despite being a WAG),took a seat on a place with a view of the entire field and watch the match for free. However,this was not just a matchday,it was a _crucial_  matchday. It was do or die. This would decide either Bayern win the Champions League or not,which led to whether we win the treble or not.  
  
**Bel's to do list:  
1\. Get to dorm  
2.Cook food for Manu and do my task  
3\. Prepare myself mentally and physically for tonight's game (which isn't easy considering that this is the biggest game of this season.)  
**  
What I didn't anticipate was that Manu stood right outside the gate in front of me.  
_  
What is he doing there? He is attracting attention when I don't want to get one right now._  
  
"Are you okay? You look exhausted."  
  
"Can we talk about this in the car?"  
  
"Oh. Okay. "  
  
A second after Manu stepped on the gas pedal, he asked, "Do I drive you to your dorm or my apartment?"  
  
"Dorm."  
  
"What's up with you today?"  
  
"It's just that...I had a rough day in university. This professor assigned me a huge task to do,which is due tomorrow. "  
  
"I can help you."

I shook my head."I don't know,Manu... I mean,you have stuff to deal with today as well. The match should be the one to focus on. You have to win this."

  
"It's cool,really. The match starts in like 7 and half hours. That's plenty of free time I have,and I can use it to help you."  
  
"Manu,I don't want to bother you."  
  
"Come on,let me help you."  
  
"But I don't want to risk-"  
  
"Sweetheart,I want to be a good boyfriend. Please give me a chance.I'll play well tonight and I'll help the team as much as I can to win the Champions League again,I promise you. I have a good feeling about this game,Bel. We can win the treble again."  
  
"You're an _outstanding_ boyfriend,babe. You assisted me on quite a lot of my assignments and I feel happy by just spending much quality time with you. I'm fine,I swear. Don't aid me this time,just this time,okay? I'll finish it,seriously.And I'll be in Allianz Arena on time to watch the match and cheer for you."  
  
"Belinda..."  
  
"Manuel..."  
  
"Look,both of us should do well today. You are going to cheer me and the team,while I'm gonna help you with this task. We will help each other as a couple,is that a deal?"  
  
I sighed. Manu _always_ wins on arguments. _Can he just let me win it for once?_ He always makes good points that make anyone agree to his statement and just follow him. Man,no wonder he's chosen as both Bayern and Germany National Team vice captain...He knows how to make everybody listen to him.  
  
"Alright,Manu. You win again."  
                                               *******************************************************************  
  
We finished the project together in three hours,which was a record because it usually takes a whole day to finish a homework _this_  difficult.

"Thank you again,Manu. Good luck for the game.I believe in you."  
  
I brought Manu's lips closer to mine and we kissed passionately. Manu yanked my shirt to take it off when suddenly Tania bursted right in.  
  
"Oh shoot. Sorry to interrupt you guys." she blushed as she hurried to go back out.  
  
We stopped smooching right away.I put my shirt back on.  
  
"Tania,come in. It's your dorm. I'm sorry that....that I brought Manu here without your permission.We were just... working on my project,that was it."I apologised.  
  
She opened the door so slowly,peeking at us to make sure it was safe to come in before she finally opened it normally.  
  
"Nah,Bel,don't worry about it." she grinned and shook Manu's hand. "Hey Manu,welcome back to our humble dorm."  
  
"Nice to meet you again."   
  
"Wish you lots of luck for the match,by the way. You guys can lift the trophy again,I'm certain of it."  
  
"Thank you,Tania."  
  
"People,today's special dinner is..Manu's favorite food : Potato fritters with salmon and salad!" I said enthusiastically.  
  
"Seriously? I owe you this much." Manu ran towards me,lifted me into the air and snogged me again without a shame.  
  
Tania didn't even try to screw up at the scene . Instead,she clapped her hands wildly. "Aaaww..so sweet! You guys are such a great couple!"  
  
Manu put my body down. "What can I do to reciprocate this?"  
  
"Manu,don't help me this time,okay? Remember the agreement. Just triumph over Barca and we'll have fun tonight." I winked at Manu.  
  
"What? There's a party?" It turned out Manu didn't catch my wink.  
  
"Manuel Peter Neuer,don't be clueless."  
  
"Ooooohhhh..."Tania got the message before Manu did.  
  
"Have fun,then."Tania beamed.  
  
"Tania,shh."  
                                            *******************************************************************  
  
Soon,the smell of my cooking filled everyone's noses and Manu's was no exception.  
  
"Yuuuummmmm....I'm already starving."  
  
"Wait a minute,will you? I'm plating this up."  
  
Manu snatched a potato fritter out of the plate and munched it.  
  
"Neuer!"  
  
"Sorry,Miss." He sprinted away playfully.  
  
_He's lucky he didn't get hit with my spatula...._  
  
"Now you can grab 'em!" I exclaimed as I held the plate full of food up high as if it were a trophy.  
  
"You know I'm still able to grasp them."  
  
"I know,giant.This is for you first. I'll hand Tania the next plate."  
  
"Yaaaay! Thanks,Mom!" He kissed my forehead.  
  
"Aw,you're such a nice girlfriend. Manu,you're damn blessed to have her. You better treat her well."  
  
"Dom wowwy,I pomize i wiw."  
  
"Don't talk with your mouth full." I ordered.  
  
Manu swallowed the food in a few seconds."Yes,girlfriend.By the way,this is the most delicious salmon and potato fritters I've ever had. And the salad is soooooo fresh. You're such an awesome cook."  
  
"Tania agrees."  
  
"Thanks,guys. They're highly appreciated." I smiled as I bowed at them and went to get my plate.  
  
                                          *******************************************************************  
  
"Geez,it's 1 hour away and the seats are already full." I said as I search for my seat.  
  
"Well..Welcome to the Champions League final in Allianz Arena. The last time this happened-"   
  
"Don't jinx it. It's time to break the curse."  
  
"Let's hope so."  
  
So,the game was FC Bayern vs FC Barcelona. _This is going to be a tough one,but I'm optimistic that Bayern can win it._  
  
I could hear the cheer from Bayern fans louder than I've ever heard from the front,the back,and all the way from the other side of the stadium. _The match didn't even start yet. Wow._  
  
Shortly, we received a piece of grey plastic by a guy with white hair who was wearing Bayern attributes from top to bottom.  
  
"For what is this?"   
  
"For the suedkurve choreo."  
  
_The choreo._ I usually watch the beautiful choreos on my laptop when I watch the match online. _And now,I'm part of it._  
  
The dude scanned my appearance. "Are you Manuel Neuer's girlfriend?"  
  
The spectators' attention were right at me. _Uh-oh. Somebody in here knows it._  
"Yeah."  
  
"Belinda,am I right? He shook my hand." I read about your relationship in a newspaper. There was a picture with you guys snogging in Manu's car. I totally thought it was only a rumor."  
  
I remembered the trip to the grocery store 2 days ago. My hands started to become really sweaty. _Who the heck took a picture of us in the car? I figured there was no one around...._ I took the risk to be a famous person's girlfriend,and now I have to deal with the consequences. _Keep your chill,Bel. You'll get used to it._

"Yup. That was me in the picture."  
  
"You're not German,aren't you?"  
  
_Here we go again. I'm so tired of people comparing me to others._  
  
"I'm not."  
  
"That's odd. Why-"  
  
"Belinda does not want to be interrogated right now." Tania stood up.  
  
The old dude sauntered away,eyeing me with disgust.   
  
I breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you.I owe you one,Tania."  
  
"Nah,you don't owe me anything."  
  
Minutes later,players emerged into the pitch for the warm-up.  
  
Tania pointed at Manu. "There he is!"  
  
For a millisecond I caught a glimpse of him ,giving a thumbs-up and winking at me as he jogged toward the goalpost to do some usual goalkeeper exercises.  
  
"Oh my God,he winked at you!"  
  
_That wasn't my imagination,then_.  
  
After the warm-up, the players came back to the changing rooms..  
  
"Tania,save the seat for me,please."  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"To the players' changing room."  
  
"Bel..."  
  
"Please,I need to wish him lots of luck."  
  
"You already did."  
  
  I ignored her and hurried past the aisles and weird looks both from the players and the fans.Eventually,I arrived in front of the changing room.I knew the way to it from the Allianz Arena tour Manu gave me. I've never been into one full of guys,so I chose to be polite by knocking on the door without opening it.  
  
"Can I have Manu for a second,guys? It's Belinda here."  
  
"Yo,Manu. Your girl's here." Thomas laughed.  
  
Manu in a blue undershirt unlocked the door. "Yeah,love?"  
  
"I just want to wish you all the best for the match."  
  
I could hear the men's _ooohs_ and _aaahs_ from inside.  
  
"Manu,kiss her!" It was Thomas again.  
  
Manu turned his head inside the room for a while. "Not in front of you,Thomas!" And he laughed.  
  
"I love you. We can kiss later,okay? After the match. Gimme a hug."  
  
"Sure,I love you too." I hugged him tightly and blew a kiss instead as I raced back to my seat.  
  
                                              *******************************************************************  
"Thank Lord you're here. I thought you got lost."  
  
"I'm not new to this place,Tania."  
  
"I know,but-"  
  
"You're so overprotective,Gosh."  
  
"I apolo-"  
  
"Thank you for your consideration,though. I'm not complaining about you,I swear."  
  
"Anytime,friend."  

  Minutes later,players trotted into the arena,wearing their jerseys as usual. After a short while,fans around me brought their colored pieces of plastic above their heads. In no time,the choreo began to take shape with the three trophies that make up the Bayern treble:Bundesliga shield,DFB Cup trophy,and of course,the Champions League trophy .The whole thing was shaped by the colors of the plastic sheet we held: red for background,white for the words "Mia San Treble",and grey and gold for the trophies. I gasped by the beauty of it.

_I can't believe I'm part of this choreo._

"This is magnificent!" 

"I know." 

The match had begun. 

**Belinda's live commentary highlights: Does not include players' bookings.**

0' KICK-OFF! Auf geht's Bayern!

5' Both sides are pressing on each other..We're even so far. Come on Bayern! 

8' Oh sh**,that was wide from Messi.. 

12' FIRST CHANCE FOR US! THOMY NOOO THAT WAS OFF THE POST! 

15' MANUEL NEUER WHAT A SAVE! UNREAL. WHAT WAS THAT?! *heart eyes* 

20' My god,can that ball get any closer to the goal smh 

25' GOOOOOOOOAAAALLLLLLL!!! GUESS WHO GOT MUELLERED NOW? NICE SHOT! 1-0

29' EEEEKKKK NEYMAR STOP GETTING CLOSE TO MANU'S GOAL BYE AND MANU STOP GIVING ME HEART ATTACKS DEAR GOD

32' WHAT A COUNTERATTACK! AND WHAT.A.GOAL! LEWAAAAAAAA GOOOOOOAAAAALLLLL!! 2-0

35' COSTA GOOOOOOOOAAAAAALLLL!!!! I'M GOING TO LOSE MY HEAD RIGHT NOW HELP 3-0 

38' MANU TACKLED SUAREZ! LMAOOO 

39' WHAT THE HELL IS MANU DOING RUNNING WITH THE BALL PAST THE HALFWAY LINE HOLY GUACAMOLE BE CAREFUL!

 _What if someone stole the ball from him and scored past him? We are screwed._  

"Manu,what the f-" I put my hands on my face. _I don't wanna see what happens next._  

"Bel,look!"

I couldn't believe what I saw. Manu went past the defenders,into the penalty box,and...

The ball got in the low left corner of the net. 

My heart.

Stopped.

40' GOOOOOOOOAAAAAALL MANUEL NEUER! THAT WAS INSANE! IS HE A FREAKING GOALKEEPER OR FORWARD WTF

I dropped into darkness.

                                               *******************************************************************  
"Bel?"

"Yuh? Tan? Are you there?"

 _Ouch._ My head hurt.

"Gosh,you okay?" Tania asked,followed by other Bayern fans who stared down upon me with worry. Not wanting to draw even more attention ,I decided to bring  myself to a seating position.  
  
"I'm alright. But what happened though? Did I faint?"  
  
"Yes.Thank God you're alright."  
  
"Did the match finish yet?"  
  
"No.It's halftime."  
  
"Good."  
  
"Your boyfriend scored a goal!" Someone far away shouted.  
  
Yes! He's so amazing today that I'm not surprised he did score. Everyone was effing screaming when he did it. That was brilliant. You should be proud." The voice that I recognised shifted closer to my ear. _That old dude again._    
  
He popped up from behind the circle of crowd and grinned at me with his yellow teeth. _Creepy._    
  
So, I fainted because Manuel Neuer scored an outfield goal? Now the chants that I heard just before I fell into nothingness made _so_ much sense.  
  
"What happened to you,my dear?" _Now he pretends to care about me?_    
  
He moved past the crowd that gave way to him,crouched down and touched my cheeks.  
  
_Don't say anything,Bel. Just keep the anger to yourself.Don't lash out in public._  
  
"She's fine now,thank you very much." Tania said as she brought the guy to a standing position.  
  
"Hey! I just want to make sure she's okay!" he complained.  
  
"I'm totally okay." I stood up with my head still spinning.  
  
The throng backed off and returned to their places.  
  
"Stay strong,beautiful." he winked at me and strolled away.  
  
_What am I supposed to say now? Weird._  
  
"Thanks,Tan."  
  
"You're always welcome."  
  
The second half was underway.  
  
46' COME ON LET'S SCORE MORE,BAYEERN!!  
  
47' THAT WAS TOO QUICK FROM MESSI! MANU SAVED OMGGGG I THOUGHT THAT WENT IN! *sigh of relief*  
  
50' LEWY KLLOOOOOOSEEE HOOOOWWWWWW  
  
54'DON'T YOU TOUCH MY THOMAS BISSSSHHHHHH  
  
56' Outstanding clearance from Manu! He's on fire today!  
  
62' AAAAAAAHHHH!!! I thank God for Jerome Boateng dear god that was like a millisecond before it's too late.  
  
65'Barca is really putting the pressure on us....  
  
70' THOOOOMAAAAAAAAASSSSSS GOOOOOOOOAALALALALALALAALLLLLLL!!! 5-0 WE'RE F***ING GONNA WIN THIS BABY!!  
  
73'MANU SAVES AGAIN! BLESS HIS HAND AMEN  
  
77' TOOORRRRRMAAAAAAAAAASSSS MUELLLEEEEEERRRR HATTRICK BISSSSSHH HATTRICKKK BISSSSSSSHHHHH HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHSHHAHA GOOOOOAAALL 6-0  
  
78' I'M GONNA EXPLODE WITH HAPPINESS NGL I WANT THIS MATCH TO END RIGHT NOW WE WIN THIS THING FOR SURE GUYS MIA SAN TREBLE  
  
82' NEYMAR  UUGGHHHH THAT WAS TOO GOOD! But not too good to pass ManuWALL Neuer ehh #sorrynotsorry  
  
85' Freekick for us! Yooooo David Alaba :)))

86' ALABOOOOOOOOM! GOAAAAAALLLLLLLLL! BARCA'S NET IS OFFICIALLY BUSTED OK BYEEEEEEE (7-0)

90'Make it like 10-0 pls I'm loving this. +3 mins!  
  
90+3'The match is ending in like 1 minute...  
  
90+4' MIA SAN CHAMPIONS BABYYYYYYYYYY F*** YEAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH WE SLAY THE UNIVERSE HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAAH  
Bayern 7-0 Barcelona (remember when we won 7-0 as well a couple of seasons ago lmao now we did it in only 1 match! we fricking KILLED them!! JAHAHAHAHAHHAHA!!!  
AND WE FINALLY WIN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE IN ALLIANZ ARENA! WE BROKE THE BLOODY CURSE!!!  
THOMAS HATTRICK,ANOTHER ONE OF MANU'S OUTFIELD GOAL,ALABA,LEWY,AND COSTA GOALS. WHAT MORE CAN YOU ASK FOR?

I was crying and shouted  my head off at the same time while embracing Tania too hard.  
  
The songs "FC Bayern Forever Number One" and "Stern Des Suedens" were loud and clear all across the stadium. Every single one of us were chanting. Some players were running around and clapping while others were piled on top of each other.  
  
I sighted Manu beaming at me . I blew a kiss at him,and he reciprocated it.  
  
"MANUEL NEUER,I LOVE YOU!"  
  
"I LOVE YOU MORE!"  
  
Then,the players gathered together to take a photo with the trophy and scattered around the field after that. Manu was holding the trophy with pride while standing on the edge of the pitch so close to where the fans sat.He looked so hyper I thought he was drunk,even though I was aware that he wasn't. His happiness shined all the way through him. He fulfilled his promise made earlier in the day. I couldn't have been more proud of him.  
  
_My tears should actually stop coming out right now. I'm sure I produced a gallon already._    
  
The fireworks started coloring the night sky while the players' wives and girlfriends went into the ground to congratulate their boyfriends/husbands. I scurried all the way to the middle of the field  just to hug Manu. I didn't even care about the cameras anymore. _They know that I'm his girlfriend,so what's the point of hiding?_  
  
"Manu!"  
  
"Bel!"  
  
I jumped at him and held onto him tight despite his damp shirt from the exhausting game.  
  
Manu raised me up in the air and spinned me around,followed by a kiss. His warm,gigantic hands started to move down my spine,unattaching my bra strap.  
  
_Not now,Manu._  
  
The next thing I noticed I was right on top of him,who had his back on the wet grass,my lips still pressed to his.  
  
_Snogging the love of my life under the fireworks in the center of Allianz Arena,my true home. Aahh. Like a dream come true._    
  
_Don't freak out. We are still fully dressed._  
  
_But you guys are already aaalll over each other. The world is watching you._  
  
_Let us be in the center of attention.._  
  
_Bel..._  
  
_I want this to last as long as Manu wants. He deserves it._  
  
Manu opened his eyes. I pulled away.  
  
"Oh sh-,we're in public. I thought-" He scanned the situation and seemed shocked to find himself in the center of the stadium. "Jesus! We're on the grass! In the Allianz! Lord..."   
  
I laughed. " Congrats on the goal,by the way."  
  
"Thanks. Now you have to fulfill your other half of the promise."  
  
"Alrighty then,but not here.Let's walk to the bench and get some water."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reason I chose Barcelona for FC Bayern to go against has nothing to do with whether I like the club or not so #nohate
> 
> Feel free to comment or leave kudos on my fic!  
> Chapter 6 is already posted :D Just click on the next chapter ! :))


	6. Sky Full of Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Manu unveils the secret behind his relationship with Thomas Mueller as the romance between Manu and Bel becomes even more serious.

It was a calm morning,just the day after the Champions League triumph. I was cooking pasta with white sauce when Manu put his enormous hands over my eyes.

"Guess who?" 

"Manu..it's you. Who else?" 

He released his hand. "Peek-a-boo!".

 "I didn't know you are _this_ childish. You are friends with Thomas Mueller for too long."

 He laughed. "That's true.I'm not going to stop being friends with him,though. He's the most amazing guy I've ever known."

 "I'm not asking you to stop being friends with him. He's a funny and talented dude,and he's my 2nd favorite football player."

 "Then who's your first favorite?"

 "Don't pretend you don't know." I grinned.

 "Well,I doooon't knoooow..." Manu shrugged.

 "You,duhhh." I poked his nose.

 "Aw,cute." He closed his eyes as he laughed. 

 "Actually,I ship _you_   with him." I grinned. 

 Manu's eyes went wide."You're kidding."

 "Nope.Is this whole Neuller thing true?"

 "Oh my God..." He seemed to be thinking of it for a while. "Okay. Let me explain about this a bit...how am I supposed to explain this?" 

 "Come on,tell me.Be honest." I teased as I pushed his shoulder playfully. 

 "Uh..I'm mostly straight,I swear. But,he's my best friend. Like,very _very_   best. And you should know how it feels like to have someone who likes you like no other. Who has no problem spending lots of time with you,and do stuff with you. He's like....my _friend_ ,who is a _boy_ ,as you can say.  Even though my teammates just think we're just close friends. Thomas and I usually share the same room when we're away from home,in hotel rooms,for example. I watch TV,eat pasta, and cuddle with him _a lot_  . I invite him to my house when I'm lonely. It kinda sucks having a friend who has a wife already because I can't hang out with him all the time."

 "So,you have a _boyfriend_  ?"

 Manu couldn't resist telling the truth. "Um,yeah,I guess,as you call it. But now that I've got you....I don't need him as a cuddle partner that much anymore. Obviously, we're still best friends and you can tell that just by looking at Thomas and I."

 "So,I can conclude that Neuller is true."

 He pondered for a minute."Yeah,you can say that. Don't tell this to anyone,though. It'd be embarrassing for me. I don't want Thomas's wife to know this,either."

 I cleared my throat. "How about Manuel Neuer's girlfriend?"

 He snorted."You won't be jealous of Thomas,right? Come on..."

 "Well,I _am_ ." I crossed my arms in front of my chest,trying not to giggle.

"Bel..."

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For confessing about that." He stared at the floor with guilt.

I snickered and said "It's okay." as I slung my arm over his shoulder and patted his back. "You're being truthful.You don't hide stuff from me ever since we're a couple.As long as you still love me,it's fine.I love Thomas too. I'd ask for a bestie like him anytime. You're lucky to have him. But I love you a million times more."

Manu blushed and seemed to be relieved. "I love you to the positive infinity."

"Sounds like math to me."

"Math nerd." He bursted into laughter.

"Football nerd." I smirked and pecked his cheek.

                                                ***************************************************************************

Manu turned on the TV.I sat beside him,eating a bowl of pasta.

The first thing I read was:   _Hot! Manuel Neuer was all over his new girlfriend,Belinda,on the Champions League victory celebration in Allianz Arena._

I almost dropped my bowl.

"Oh Lord...that's us. That's _us_. Lord....I'm sorry I didn't mean to expose my girlfriend this way. I...wasn't being the usual Manuel Neuer. When I spotted you darting toward me,I lost my mind. I thought we were on ourselves. I even forgot about the win. I didn't know where we were. I was so.. _into you_.  I didn't know what I was doing. All that was in my brain was you. I wanted you so bad." He sighed and shook his head.

"You have always been the usual Manuel Neuer,trust me. And don't worry yourself about this situation. It's all right,really ."

"But now _everybody_  on Earth knows about this . Your family.."

_My family. Are they aware of this news? Hopefully not. I don't think they're going to approve this. But this is my life,not theirs. I've found my true love,and I'm going to hold onto him for the rest of my life._

"I'm okay with it."

"You sure?"

"Positive.Now eat the pasta. "

"Okay,chef!"

He scooped the pasta and popped it all in his mouth.

"Iz ummy."

"Thanks. How many times did I tell you to not talk with your mouth full?"

"Sowwy."

"Wait in here. Let me get some milk from the fridge."

Two minutes later,I came back with two glasses of milk.

"Holy sh-"

Manu's bowl was empty. He _really_ loves Italian food. He smiled with a piece of pasta stuck in his teeth.

"Gosh,did you just eat the whole thing in one second or something?"

"It was _too_  good. How am I supposed to not eat it too fast? The pasta was _al dente_  and the sauce was _deeeeeeeelicious_."

"Glad you loved it."

I pulled a throw over both of us and put my head on his lap as we continued watching TV.

 

                                       ***************************************************************************

 

"Manu,where are we going? It's almost midnight."

"Somewhere that you will love being at."

"Is it Bayern-related?"

"No. It's just for the two of us."

_The two of us. Just the two of us. At midnight. Fascinating._

I felt really sleepy,but I wanted to stay awake for the sake of this mysterious journey.

We arrived in an endless meadow full of grass. I'd never been in this place before. _Is this still in Munich or not? It seems like we've driven far..far from our apartment._

I jumped out of the car.

"D'you wanna sit on the roof of the car or on the grass?" Manu asked.

"It's up to you."

"Let's sit on the grass,then."

The moon was gleaming bright in the sky,so were the dancing stars. Manu and I sat side by side. I turned my head to see his baby blue eyes observing the stars.

"The moon is gigantic,isn't it?"

"Hang on,isn't today the day when the moon is at its closest point to Earth? What do we call it? The _supermoon_ ,I think."

He beamed. "That's correct. I give you an A+++."

"Thank you,sir."

The sky full of stars evoked me of my favorite song. _Now that he is right beside me, so why not sing it to him?_

**_"'Cause you're a sky,'cause you're a sky full of stars_**

**_I'm gonna give you my heart."_**

He continued, ** _''Cause you're a sky,'cause you're a sky full of stars_**

**_'Cause you light up the path."_**

I gasped. "You _know_  this song?"

"Yep. The song reminds me of you."

"No way."

"What happened?"

"Nothing. It's just another proof that we're meant for each other."

His forehead wrinkled. "What do you mean? It reminds you of me too?"

I nodded.

"That's kinda.....creepy....but wonderful!"

I exhaled. "Finally I found my match."

"Me too."

I resumed singing. ** _"I don't care,go on and tear me apart._**

**_I don't care if you do ooh ooh."_**

And then we sang altogether **_"'Cause in a sky,'cause in a sky full of stars. I think I saw you."_**

We went on and on until the song ends.

Manu fixed his gaze on me.His face glimmered even more than the moon in front of us. "Do you know how much I love you?"

"Um, so much?"

"I love you more than the number of stars in the universe."

I whispered back,"I love you more than absolutely _anything_ that ever exists in this universe."

We were about to kiss when he said,"I have something for you."

He was rummaging through his pocket and finally took a ring case out of it.I held my breath. He opened the case. Inside was a white gold ring with diamond on top.

"Would you like to marry me?"

_Marry me? Manuel Neuer wants to marry me?_   _I can't believe it. It's coming true. It's coming true._   For a while I thought of my family's likely disapproval of this affair, but I shrugged it off. _I'm going to risk everything  to be his wife. I'm going to fulfill whatever it takes to make my biggest dream come true._

Tears gushed out of my eyes. "I......I....Oh my God-"

I've never hugged someone so tight before.

"I love you,Manuel."

"I love you too,Bel. I guess I'll take this as a yes."

We kissed under a billion flickering stars . Not even a Champions League victory yesterday could compare to this. Neither did _any_  of my best memories in the past.

Nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lyrics used in the chapter: Sky Full of Stars by Coldplay
> 
> Feel free to leave kudos and comment on my fic!  
> Chapter 7 has already been posted,just click on the next chapter! :)


	7. The Broken Vow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The beginning of the first summer for the newly-engaged Manu and Bel doesn't go so well. Tania is gone,which Bel finds hard to deal with. And worse, the threat from Bel's parents might bring the couple's courtship to an end.

    Eventually,summer came. Staring at the empty bed next to me,I thought of Tania. She had been acting so weird lately. She barely talked to me anymore. All she said these days were "Yes", "No" and "Okay".  I asked her whether she was mad at me,and she replied no. She was just _tired._  I didn't believe her,though. I was aware that she had a problem that she didn't want to share with me. Was it related to our friendship,or something else? I guess I might never know. 

    On these two weeks, she was staying in her parents' house . I couldn't tell whether she'd come back or not,because she said nothing on her way out the door two days ago. Some of her stuff were still in dorm,though. Her comb,her towel,and her toothbrush. Don't ask me why she'd left it. _I bet she's having so much fun right now,and I'm here with bare legs, hair messed up, my oversized red Bayern jersey still on and stuck with pillows and blankets. Right._

     The good news was,Manu and I would spend our first summer together in Dubai. Wondering about what Dubai would be like after 1 year,I realized how close it is to my old home. I didn't want to go home. I didn't want to see my parents. One year was too short _._ So,I decided to tell my parents that I'm not flying home this summer.

     Manu had been offering to stay with me in dorm,or for me to stay in his apartment for two weeks before we fly to Dubai. I refused the offer only because I didn't want to attract even more attention from the people who lived around me. Attention to my so-called _controversial_   relationship with Manu. I just wished this news would die down already,before it was too late.

My sight veered to the WhatsApp message from Mom that I received days ago. I still didn't reply to it yet.

 **Why aren't you going back home this summer? We miss you.**  

I chuckled. _As if they actually care about me._

    Fact was,I didn't miss them at all,because I was exhausted after those years of being the black sheep in the family. I desired freedom,and the only way to earn it was to get away from them as far as possible. I ached to prove that I could live happy without them. With Manu and Tan by my side,life couldn't get any better. The only thing that bothered me a lot was the fact that my mom and dad messaged me every single day,asking how I was doing. I was so bored by their messages that I chose to ignore them. After all,I was their least favorite child,despite being the most intelligent of the four. They only care about me because I'm their daughter.Why would they care about me,now that they finally got rid of me? Sometimes parents are just _impossible_ to understand. 

Finally I responded,

**Hey Mom,I'm busy. I'm sorry. I miss you guys too.**

One minute later, Mom wrote,

**Belinda. Get on Skype now. We have to talk. Face to face.This is serious.**

Not even once in my life ,Mom mentioned the word _serious._ I gulped. _Crap's about to go down._   Maybe,maybe......they had made my worst fear come true.

    I logged on my Skype account,and not only my mom,but my _dad_ was also already waiting for me. I could tell from their stern faces that I was in a very big trouble. A shiver rolled down my spine. There was only one reason behind this. My liaison with Manu. I understood that this would finally happen,but not this soon. I chose not to start the conversation.

Surprisingly,My dad sighed instead of bubbling with anger. "I shouldn't have let you go to Munich."

    I felt a stab of guilt right away. _Can the Earth swallow me right now?_   They'd finally discovered that Manu and I were pretty much _engaged_  without their permission. Manu's parents did know about our affair, though,and they approved . But. I surely didn't imagine my parents would.

    Deep in my heart, I blamed them for this.Blamed them for not loving me as much as they love my sisters. If they did,I would've opened up about this news early,and none of this mess wouldn't have taken place.

All that came out of my mouth were the words _I'm_ _sorry._

"Sorry doesn't change anything,Belinda. You have to break up with him and just go home. Stay with us. We have found you a good university here. You'll love it. All you have to do is leave your Munich dreams behind and come back to reality."

I was going to say _yes_ just to shut them up, but I ended up saying the honest thing. "No."

"Belinda." My mom raised her voice. "He...is not good for you. You must obey what your parents said and fly here. You have crossed the line,and we would never ever forgive you if you don't come here."

"Let me explain-"

"No,you don't have to explain. We know everything that you did with him. And that ring..." She pointed at the same ring that Manu gave me on that supermoon night. "We're not as _stupid_   as you think."

     A lump formed in my throat. We didn't speak for a moment as I was trying to hold down the tears. All of a sudden,my phone was ringing again with FC Bayern's _Stern Des Suedens_ song . The call was, of course,from Manu. _Oh no._

"Mom,Dad,hang on a sec."

I rushed into the toilet and pressed the green button.

"Hello?"

"Um,hey love."

"How are you?" The question that I dreaded the most. Manu always asks this question on each and every call to make sure I'm fine. Unlike any other time,I was too scared to answer this simple, yet _very_ complicated question.

My voice shattered. I could feel the phone slipping from my sweaty hands. "I'm fine."

Without any warning,I broke into tears. I was done. I couldn't hide this from Manu anymore. Unfortunately,he had to face the painful truth,too.

"Bel?"

"I'm..my parents...." I sobbed.

"What?"

"My parents don't approve of our courtship. I'm incredibly sorry. I mean it."

    I could hear Manu exhaling. His breath rattled and came out slowly. Certainly,Manu was disappointed. Disappointed by the reality that I've been lying about my parents being fine with this,and disappointed by the reality that this beautiful romance was about to be over.

"Let me talk to your parents."

"Manu,no."

"Bel,I'm driving to your dorm,whether you like it or not. I'm going to sort this out. "

"I'm...I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault. I started all this,and now I have to fix it. I can do this,Bel. I'll explain _everything_ to your parents. I'm going to rescue you from their wrath. Just give me a chance,okay?"

"It's _my_ fault,Manu. Deal with it. Maybe Mom is right." I bit my lip. "You're _not_ mine. I don't deserve an angel like you. I'm not a good girfriend,Manu. I told you a big lie on our first year of our relationship. I can't...believe what I've done." I sobbed harder. "I should've informed you about this issue much earlier. But...but..all I wanted was you,and I didn't care about anything else. I didn't give a crap about my family. I didn't Skype them for 2 weeks. _What kind of girl am I?_ I'm an awful person. Don't you see it,Manu? _Don't you?_ If I can't do the job of making my family happy as a _daughter_ ,then obviously I can't be a great future _wife_ to my future husband. You deserve someone better than me,Manuel... No need to try to fix this problem. It's not gonna make any difference." I sighed hopelessly.

"It isn't your fault. You didn't expect me to love you,didn't you? My heart got the best of me and I took you to dinner and my apartment that night. And...and...I wasn't supposed to do that,am I? You thought I was insane when I asked you to be my girlfriend. I'm.. I'm sorry I've got you into so much trouble. But I can't let you go,ever. I accept you the way you are,Bel."

"Manu,you don't get it."

"I do. But I forgive you."  


"What?"

"I do,from the bottom of my heart."

"Manu,no-"

"We are meant for each other. Remember what you said that supermoon night? Everything is going to be fine. Will you believe in me?"

"But-"

"Please."

"I....don't want to ever disappoint you. I just..want to be a perfect girlfriend for you,but I can't."

"You are perfect for me.Do you hear me?"

"I'm full of flaws."

"No,you're not. Now wash your face and tell your parents that I'm coming to your dorm to talk to them. Be a strong girl that I know. You can do this."

My tears stopped trickling down my face. I felt calmer, even though I was still a bit pessimistic about this. Manu really knows how to make people feel better.

I cleaned my face and walked back to my desk.

I didn't know if I should laugh at my incredibly extremely steady voice."I apologize for the interruption. He is coming to sort this out."

Dad cackled. "Yeah,let your _man_ prove how worthy he is. Bet he'll shrivel up when he faces me."

I stood up,my cheeks flushed with anger. "No. He is brave and worthy enough to be mine. Don't talk nonsense in front of me."

"Hah-hah. Worthy enough to be yours? Since you're a piece of trash,then yes,sure,take him with you. We don't care. Both of you are the same,anyways."

"Oh _really_? Guess what? We aren't the same. He is honest 99% of the time,and I'm honest 60% of the time. His look is a perfect 100, while mine's a 10. He's a true leader,while I'm not really one. I have _a lot_ to contrast with Manu,by the way. But overall, he's a better person than I am."

Dad snapped. "Very funny. Taking a girl into bed on the first day? I don't think it's a good idea. He's just as bad as you are,even worse."

I gasped. "How did you kno-"

"Tania,your very generous friend,of course. She kindly revealed all the secrets between you and him. Yes,and we know what both of you did in the night _your_ team won the Champions League. You people are so _dumb_ that you didn't even realize the whole world was watching you." He glared at me and my Bayern jersey, eyeing it with disgust. He knew my favourite team had defeated his favourite,and he certainly didn't love that.

     Worse,I felt like swallowing sand. Tania,my favourite person in the world beside Manu, betrayed me? After all the moments we had together? After all the years' worth of secrets and promises that I keep? And she broke the vow. The vow not to mention any single detail about my love affair. The _major_ oath,I called it. The most important vow. The vow that held my future.

     In a flash, the bell rang. Manu had arrived. He was wearing a dark blue long sleeved shirt,beige pants and white sneakers. His face was streaked with tears. His red, puffy eyes were fixed towards me. Then,the thought had come down to me. He had cried. He had cried after that telephone call. He had cried after I told him all of this was going to be over. He was right. He didn't want to lose me. His love for me is genuine.

I bolted at him, threw myself on his arms,and began weeping.

"Bel,it's okay, I've got this." Manu whispered softly as he brushed my hair slowly.

"But..but what if I have to go home?"

"You're not going home. Trust me,I promise you."

 _Another promise._ A sick feeling in my stomach swept through me. What if Manu didn't fulfill his promise? I had enough of people breaking promises. It was too much to take in one day. However,I decided to trust Manu for what might be the last time.

     He leaned on me and kissed me,my wet lips pressing on his. My tongue tasted salt in his mouth. Manu's tears. _Angel's tears._ So pure and true. Neither of us wanted to end this last kiss,but I decided to pull away,afraid that my parents would acknowledge what was going on.

"I just want to say that I still love you. You'll forever be in my heart. Don't ever forget me. I'm going to miss you so much." I said.

He hugged me. I could hear him whimpering,his tears dripping on my shoulders. "You're not gonna leave me. I'll fight this war for you. "

"Good luck." I told him.

He wiped his face with his sleeve and turned onto the hot seat in front of my parents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to comment or leave kudos on my fic!  
> Chapter 8 has already been posted so click the next chapter x


	8. The Verdict

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bel's parents seemed to dislike Manu a lot. But will their opinion change after Bel got a little help from her sister?

Manu greeted my parents on the other side. "Hello."

Predictably,they didn't return the greeting.

"I'm Manuel Neu-" 

"You don't _have_ to introduce yourself. We know _all_ about you. You're famous,after all. If you weren't famous, our daughter wouldn't have been crazy about you."

Manu was taken aback by the comment,but he kept his politeness. "Nice to know you."

"Nice to know us,huh? After a whole year of your.... _secret_  affair with her,and neither you nor her wanted to ever let us know. _Really?_ Explain this to me."

Manu was going to start the clarification,but I interrupted. "By the way,don't bring him in this argument. I didn't tell him that you don't approve of this relationship until now. It's not his fault. He didn't know anything about this problem."

Mom gasped. 

"No. It _is_ my fault. She was just a regular fan when she met me. _I_ was the one who asked her to be my girlfriend. Don't blame her. I'm responsible for everything."

_Regular? Didn't he mention that I'm special on that day? Is he just trying to convince my parents that I'm a regular fan,or....or..._

"Regular? Oh no,she's _obsessed_ with you! She loves you more than she loves us! You're the reason why she ignores us! Which is exactly why we give you two choice: to dump her now or for her to get back home and live with us. Either way means getting rid of the main distraction in her life: _you._ " Dad cackled.

 "I'm keeping her."

"Oh,you think you have the right to do that? Who _are_ you? A random blond goalkeeper who gets out of the box and is  _worshipped_ by lots of people,including her? You can get that type of people in the nearby market! You're not even hers! And we, _we are her parents._ We _own_ her. We _raised_ her. We know her for years. She's _ours_ ,and will never be yours."

I spoke up. "I'm not owned by anyone. I'm not a slave! You are saying it as if I am your property and I'm not supposed to be free? And don't talk trash about my fiancée."

"You are never free,my dear. We have always been watching you. And he's not your fiancée."My dad noted.

"Oh yes,I deserve to be free. Didn't you forget that I'm also _human_? And Manu? He's my _escape_. My escape from your jail. He's all I've got. You can take anything but him away from me. He's mine."

"Enough. Get out of my sight!"

"Fine." I withdrew from the scene.

"Dump her!" My dad barked.

"No."

"Dad!" I screamed.

Manu's intense blue eyes locked with my brown eyes,full of worry. It sent a message. _Just leave it up to me,will you?_

I shook my head and let out a sigh. I put my earphones on both of my ears and concentrate on attempting to persuade my sister to help out. 

**Me:**

**Oi,can you do me a favor?**

**Sis:**

**Of course,sista.**

**Me:**

**I'm in trouble because our parents know about...you know..**

**Sis:**

**Your love story?**

**Me:**

**Yep.**

**Sis:**

**Mission accepted.**

   My sister was the only family member who had a knowledge of my relationship with Manu. I informed her about everything . She agreed on our relationship,though she was jealous herself. She had a crush on Manu,but she didn't mind not having him as a husband. That was partly because she admitted that I deserve him more than she does. Because she wasn't a fan of his for as long as I was. She said that although it was kept secret,Manu and I were meant to be together. She had been begging me to meet him face-to-face. _Later,_ I said. Now that this affair was on the brink of ending,I had no clue when _later_ is going to _ever_ come. Anyways, I made her swear not to tell anyone about this. And she kept that oath,unlike my own best friend. My sister is the opposite of me. She's the luckiest and the most loved child in the family. She gets all of the things that she wants. I used to get jealous of her,to be honest with you,but at the moment I had to focus on how to use her to my advantage. Thing was, my parents always listen to her. So,maybe...just maybe... they could buy whatever reason my sis is gonna come up with to convince them that Manu is the perfect dude for me.

**Me:**

**What are you even going to say?**

**Sis:**

**Don't worry. I've got a plan worked out.**

**Me:**

**Are you dead serious about this?**

**Sis:**

**Duh,chill.**

**Me:**

**I trust you.**

**Sis:**

**Leave it all to me.**

Seconds later,she busted through my parents' bedroom door. "Heya all!

"What are you doing here?" 

"Oh my God,Manuel Neuer!" Her eyes went wide. "Oh-my-Godddd!" She rushed to the table."Are you for real? Manu!"

"Hey." Manu waved his hand and showed her his signature Manuel Neuer smile. A smile that could melt every girl's heart.

Both of my parents looked confused. "What is actually going on?"

"Don't you get it? It's Manuel Neuer, Belinda's fiancé! Isn't he good for our family? Believe me,he's every girl's dream husband. Handsome,intelligent,kind,down-to-earth,modest,generous,talented,what more could you ask from him? And you know what they did? They are working together to make Manuel Neuer Kids Foundation even bigger and better! Sis has been working as a part-time math teacher in a school just to help the foundation! Isn't it great?"

"What? How did you know all this?" My dad's look turned even more puzzled.

"From sis,of course! Tell them all about the foundation."

I couldn't stop blushing when she told him that. "You don't have to tell him,you know."

   I apprised them about last winter,when I visited the foundation in Manu's hometown for the first time. I remembered their happy faces too well when they spotted me. I played football,paint,dance,and do stuff with them. It was one of the best days I've had in years. That day,I promised myself that I'm going to improve their lives by donating my salary every month. I didn't wish to ask my parents for the money. So, I got a job. Manu couldn't stop thanking me on the day I donated my first salary.

"Wow,I'm impressed." My dad's face didn't seem so stern anymore. Mom nodded in agreement.

My sis grinned from ear to ear."I'm so proud of her! Manu isn't a distraction to her. Instead,she's becoming more hardworking. Did you know that she is the best in her year? Aren't you proud?"

"Yeah."

Manu's massive hand touched my warm cheeks. "Me too."

"And by the way,that's very considerate of you to help the children in Germany. Keep it up! Maybe you aren't so bad,after all. You are a positive influence to Belinda." Dad said.

"Exactly! Manu is also a hardworking dude. Look at him,the best goalkeeper in the whole universe! Treble winner once again! It really shows that they support each other a lot. They're a wonderful couple! Manu is treating Sis just right. Don't you want the best for your daughter?" She said it with a cute smile. "Please,with chocolate on top?"

"But really,how could you tell your sister and not tell us about all this?" Dad asked.

"I'm sorry,Dad. I don't trust you."

"Why?"

"Because....because you don't trust me. I only trust people that trust me,such as Manu and my lil' sis here. They're the people that I'm the most comfortable with,partly because they understand me so well and make me feel good about life. Sometimes you have to just trust me and let me live my own life." I said.

My parents were silent for a couple of minutes.

"Are you sure that he's the right one for you? Because you should deal with the consequences of marrying him." Mom sounded like she was still in doubt. 

"Positive. I accept every single part of him with all my heart,both the strengths and the weaknesses. I promise I will not hide anything from you again. And you too,Manu. From now on,I'll never keep any secret from you. We'll always be open to each other. That's the key to a healthy relationship. 

"And you'll still study hard and doing your best in the university?"

"Promise. You can take me back home if I don't."

Dad stared at Manu,and did what I'd never imagine him doing in ages. He grinned from ear to ear. At Manu. Manu reciprocated it.

"Okay,I have decided to trust both of you.Manu,take care of her."

_Did Dad just called him Manu?_

Manu eyes were teary again. "Th-thank you."

"Alright. Before the marriage, can both of you please meet us? Just to get to know Manu more. We can give him a tour of the city,if he wishes." Mom said.

"In fact,I went there. We're also going to spend our vacation in Dubai this summer,so why not?" 

"Great! We shall meet next time,then. Where and when is the marriage ceremony ,by the way? 

"Allianz Arena,Bayern Munich's stadium. As of when,we haven't chosen the date yet."

"But we didn't discuss-"

"I'll marry you in Allianz Arena,okay? It's our home and always will be."

I lost my breath. _Marrying the best goalkeeper in the world in the best stadium in the world? My life just feels like a dream._  

"When you visit Munich,I'm going to give you free tickets to watch our matches,too." He beamed at my sister.

"Yaaay! Thanks!" She whooped.

"Goodbye and don't be naughty....yet." Dad smirked.

"Bye!" Manu laughed. I turned off my laptop.

"Manu?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad you came." 

We shared a kiss.  _Thank God that wasn't the last one._

"Do you wanna go to my apartment?"

"I'll do it in a heartbeat. Before we go,can I call my sis first?"

"Sure."

"Hello? Thank you so much for saving my life! I owe you one."

My sister giggled on the phone. "Get me Manu's blue jersey,gloves,and a ball with Manu's signature on it. That's how you pay me."

"Ah,that's easy peasy lemon squeezy. I'll do it."

"Okay bye! My friend is coming over."

"Have fun! Bye!"

And just like that,all of my jealousy towards my sister were gone. I took back all of the nasty stuff I mentioned about her.  _I am the luckiest person on earth. I have the best sister ever._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos or comment on my fic! <3  
> Chapter 9 is posted,check it out!


	9. Friend or Foe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tania comes back to dorm. As expected, Bel has to face the dreadful meeting with the traitor who tries to ruin Bel and Manu's affair. She has 2 choices: to leave Tania alone forever or to forgive her. Also,Manu makes a choice that leads Bel to argue with him.

  The song "Stern Des Suedens" rang across the room. It was my phone again. _Who the heck calls meat 6 a.m. in the morning? _ Ugh. Not wanting to wake Manu up, I grabbed the phone,covered the speaker with my hands,made a run to the living room,and closed the door.  When I checked who was actually calling,I stared at Tania's name with horror. _The girl who betrayed me._ _Cool_. I had an urge to puke at the sight of the name. Somehow,I pressed the green button,because after that I heard the voice of hers. That voice. Tania's. Of course. _Who else?_

 

"Hello,Bel? It's Tan. How's your summer? I've just arrived in dorm. Where are you? Can you come here and have a chat with me?"

"Why do you care about my whereabouts,huh? You don't even _bother_ keeping your vow. No need to talk to you anymore. I know everything." I said in a harsh tone. 

She said nothing. I hung up. 

Five seconds later, the phone rang again. I picked it up and let her talk. _As if I need to listen to her filthy excuses._

"Listen. I'm sorry,okay? I know I was being such a bad friend when I broke it , but now I realized my mistake and I'm really,really sorry."

I still didn't say anything.

"I heard you guys are going to get married soon. Congrats!"

Mouth shut.

"Bel? Bel? Are you there?"

  Manu unlocked the living room door with his eyes half-open. I couldn't figure out if he was half-asleep or he was squinting at me. He wore nothing except his brown shorts. His dark blond hair was sticking out everywhere. He still appeared cute despite all the mess."Honey?"

I handed him the phone. "Talk to her. I'm not in the mood."

Manu raised his eyebrows. "Who is it?"

"My ex-best friend."

He understood and grasped the phone. "Tania? It's Manuel speaking."

"Manuel? Are you two okay? Did I ruin your relationship? I'm very,very sorry for-"

"It's okay,Tan. And yes, we're perfectly fine. But,Bel doesn't want to talk to you,so I'm afraid you have to come to my apartment to talk to her directly."

"Oh.Okay. Thank you. Tell her I'm coming. Where's your house,by the way?"

Manu gave her the address and she hung up. He sauntered back to our bedroom.

"Hun,she's coming to talk to you."

My smile turned upside-down. "Why did you let her come here?"

"Give her a chance,okay?"

  I completely lost it."But it's our apartment! Now that you told her the address, she can visit us anytime! How am I supposed to live with you in peace? She is jealous of us,and wants to separate us in any way possible! That's why she told my parents about us when she wasn't supposed to! Don't you understand? Enough is enough. No more chances for a traitor like her. It's unacceptable." I turned my back on him.

Manu let out a sigh."You can't just let her go like that. We didn't hear the full story from her point of view. And,she's your _best friend_. You have spent so much quality time with her. When arguments happen,you always talk its way out with her. This time it'll also help,Bel."

"I don't think so. How do you know about the future,huh? Are you a fortune teller?"

"I'm not. But I learned from past experiences. I used to argue a lot with Thomas,even if the match is going on. But after the match we found a solution by talking to each other about it. Shared our thoughts,opinions,feelings about it. One day,Thomas promised to take me on a tour in this new place in Munich. I waited there fron the morning until sunset, and he didn't arrive. I called him a hundred times and he didn't answer. I was disappointed and decided to drive home. The next day,he apologized. He said he forgot all about the plan. He was with Bastian the whole day in a mall. _Was I angry?_ Yes. _Did I try to listen to what he's got to say about this?_  Yes. _Did I forgive him?_ Yes. People make mistakes,Bel. Sometimes you just have to forgive and forget. As long as we're in this together,we're fine."

"I'm not as forgiving as you are,Manu. Plus,this is a more severe problem. Our relationship was at stake.."

"At least everything is good now. She barely did any harm."

_Barely?_

"Right. And she caused both of us to cry and my parents to almost take me back. Oh yeah,I forgot. She almost broke us apart! Right,Manuel Neuer. Right. You're _always_ right."

"I didn't mean-"

I dashed out the door with the sound of Manu's footsteps behind me. He grabbed my hand.

"Please."

"What do you want?" I frowned at him. 

"I'm not forcing you to forgive her. All I want is for you to listen to her,and then judge whether she can be forgiven or not. We can discuss about it after she's done speaking."

I made a loud _umph_ and said "Whatever. Fine. Now release my hand please."

"Okay." He let my hand free.

"I have a feeling that you're going to be on her side."

"What makes you think that way?"

"You simply don't comprehend this whole thing. She has been nice to you,alright. You like her,alright. However,before she left the dorm, she was ignoring me the whole time. She dislikes me a lot,Manu. I think it's better for me to just get rid of her by not contacting her anymore. It's better for us to get away from her. What if we get married and she comes and tries to ruin everything again?"

He was quiet. "I'm sorry for that."

There was a knock on the door. It was too late.

"Open the door and tell her _no need to talk._ " I told him.

When he did it,Tania just slipped into the living room without warning. "This room is..beautiful. Where's Bel?"

"She's sleeping. She told you to go back to dorm."

"No way. I can stay until she wakes up. I really wanna talk. So,how's life?"

Before Manu responded, I popped up,my hands crossed on my chest.

  I gave her my death glare. She was wearing a white shirt with small,colorful flower patterns on it. Her blond hair was open. Her eyes were slightly red,and her face was streaked with a mix of tears and mascara. She was crying,I guess. Or she was just faking it in some way to get my attention. She was a star actress when she was in high school,so I wouldn't be shocked if those tears were fake.

Her blue eyes pledged for forgiveness from me. "Bel..."

I sat on the couch. Manu began the talk.

"Tania,tell us everything."

"Bel, I'm sorry for everything that I did. I truly am. I was just...you see,at the end of the semester,many things were happening. My mom got sick,my dad had to work so far in U.S.,my little sister ran away,stressful exams,and lots of other problems. The pressure was so immense that I lost my mind. I wanted someone who could help me cope with these problems. I wanted someone who truly loves me like no other. A boyfriend. A boy who wouldn't use me as a sex toy and dumped me after he gets bored. It's kind of traumatizing for me to have that type of boyfriend before. People said I'm hot,and it should be easy for me to get a boyfriend. The reality was,that's not the case. People had been asking me out,but I rejected them in my fear of getting the same type as the last. I've been single for five years now,it's _that_ long. But at some point you just have a desire to end your single status,right? You realize that you have to eventually get a move on to another person and stop being lonely. I'm desperate for that someone,Bel. You are a very simple and modest person,and you have the best boyfriend any girl would ever have. Who isn't jealous of that? I'm sure lots of Neuer fans are. I love you guys,really. You are the best couple ever. You guys are meant for each other. But,sometimes I get tired of you lovey-doveying in front of me. It just made me feel that I'm not loved. It hurt so much,Bel. It hurt so much that I wanted it all to end. I'm...I'm sorry. I promise I'll never do it again. Cross my heart and hope to die. What can I do for you to forgive me?" 

"How will I know that you'll never do it again? You broke a major oath! What if you try to break Manu and I apart once we're married?"

"I'm not-"

" _What if?_ I'm sick with promises!"

"Bel," Manu eyed me."I think you should trust her one last time."

"I can't believe you're on her side!" I rushed out of the room.

"Honey?" Manu followed me,expectedly.

"Leave me alone!"

Manu's finger tapped my shoulder.

"I said _go away._ "

 I threw myself on the bed and cried. 

Words from past conversations floated in my head.

_I wanted someone who truly loves me like no other. A boyfriend. A boy who wouldn't use me as a sex toy and dumped me after he gets bored_.

_What if Manu...what if.._

_What if we break up?_

_But sometimes I get tired of you lovey-doveying in front of me._

_How dare she?! Is she even my best friend? Shouldn't she be happy about this instead of actually getting jealous and ruining it?_

_He's not good for you._

_She was just a regular fan when she met me._

_Are you sure he's the right one for you?_

_She barely did any harm._

_I think you should trust her one last time._

_You guys are meant for each other._

_What if Tania is wrong? What if my love story with Manu is just a big,fat,lie?_

My head was spinning a million miles per hour. Minutes later,I heard Manu and Tania's voices. "Bel," "Honey,you fine?"

I faded out.

*************************

The first thing I heard was my name. My head felt sort of weird. It was like my head was....clearer than before. I knew what to do.

_Manu was correct. I should have listened to him.I should've just forgiven Tania._

Hopefully,my decision wouldn't backfire later on. 

He was sitting on the edge of the bed. I was covered in a white,fluffy blanket. My back was on the bed, in reverse to the position I was in before I passed out.

"I heard you calling my name." Manu spoke.

"What?"

"You were like,  _Manuel,Manuel, don't leave me."_

"I did?"

"Yes,and why on Earth would you think I'll ever leave you?"

"Nothing."

"Tell me."

"Where's Tania?"

"In the kitchen."

"Good."

Tania entered the room. She was bringing a cup of hot chocolate. "Oh my God,Bel! You're okay!"

I smiled at her for the first time in a month.

"I forgive you."

"Really?"

"It's the only way out."

"Thank you!" She squeezed me. "I'll do _anything_ for you."

"Be my bridesmaid."

"Thank yooouuuuu!" Tears began to form on her eyes. "I'm so honored!" She handed me the cup. "Drink it. You'll feel better. When and where are you gonna get married?"

I took a sip. "Ahh. Thanks. We're going to marry in The Allianz!"

"The Allianz? You mean _Allianz Arena?_ "

"Yup."

"That's awesome! Okay,I have to go. Have fun in Dubai!" She slumped her bag on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry for being harsh to you."

Tania smiled. "It's alright,bestie. See ya!"

"See ya!" 

She dashed out the door as Manu gave me a thumbs up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos/comment on my fic!  
> I have posted chapter 10. Check it out! :)


	10. Marry Me in Allianz Arena

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the couple's big day. The wedding.

   I recalled those days when Manu and I sat on the soft sand, holding hands, legs dangling in the water at Jumeirah Beach in Dubai . Those long nights driving through the roads in the lively city, singing to our favorite songs.  Manu, of course, came back drunk. I had to carry his giant body as I sprinted to the hotel room unnoticed. And then there were those warm and comfortable mornings. Us, cuddling under the blankets. His chin on my head. My calm breathing on his chest. His arm on my back. We didn’t do anything except just feeling the presence of each other. His apple soap smell and my smell of Moroccan orchids just bind _together,_ forming a whole new smell. The smell of true love.

  After a couple of days, we drove to my old home. The reunion was more emotional than I predicted. There was me, crying on my dad’s shoulder, telling him how much I missed him. How much I missed my family. As irritating as my family back then, they were still part of my blood. After all, they made me who I am. They were like, something that I would always hold on to, and would never get rid of it.

   I peeked into my little 2.5 by 3.5 meter bedroom. All of the Bayern posters, including a picture of Manu and Thomas laughing, that covered every inch of the walls were still attached.  The bed, the shelf, and the dusty desk seemed untouched. It appeared just like it had been when I left it. 

“I love your room.” It was Manu.

“Um, yeah, thank you.”

  My family treated Manu like he had always been part of them.  They even cooked the best food for him and let him stay for a couple of days. A week later, we flew back to Munich, including my family, of course. My sister was extra excited and hyper on the plane that she couldn’t sit still. Afterwards, we gathered in Manu’s parents’ house to discuss how the wedding is going to go: the ceremony, party, dresses, suits, decorations, everything. I had to try about twenty dresses on before deciding on the perfect one while Manu had to only try 3 suits before I said a yes to it. _Manu is more perfect than me, anyways. Oh well._

Last but not least, those sleepless nights I had before the wedding. I stared blankly at the dorm ceiling, wondering if this was all a dream. 

“Is this real?” I asked to no one in particular.

_Go to sleep, Bel. You’re losing your sanity._

_It’s not real, right?_

_Go to sleep._

And so I did, on the dying minutes of the night.

Someone patted my shoulder.

“Bel?”

I opened my eyes. I was in the players’ dressing room with fairy lights dangling on each corner. I studied the girl in the mirror. It struck me that I was wearing my wedding dress. White with glittery flowers on it. I looked sort of.. _different_ with make-up.

“Tan,why am I here?”

“It’s your _wedding_ _day_ , you bloody idiot.”

“Oh. Sorry,I barely slept last night.”

“Get up. It’s time for the procession to begin! Don’t run, though, you’re going to fall!”

 _Right. I’m wearing high heels. A tomboy’s cup of tea._ I chose to keep the sarcastic comments down.

“Why do I have to wear these filthy heels? My God, can’t I just wear my white Converse sneakers or something?”

Tania rolled her eyes. “Ugh.Please.”

I grumbled.

  When we strolled into the pitch, I caught sight of him, standing under the goalkeeper’s net. He was wearing a black suit with a white shirt and black tie under it. Butterflies started to flutter in my stomach. He was chatting with Thomas Mueller when he noticed me. He grinned at me and told Thomas to sit down with the others to let the procession begin.

  I walked towards my dad, who was waiting at the back of the crowd. He was dressed up in a black suit with white shirt and navy blue tie under it. He looks kinda weird. Maybe it was because I had never seen him in anything like that before. I wanted to chuckle.

_Whoa, imagine my dad and I walking side by side. I’m wearing high heels, and he is only like, what,below my shoulder’s height? Oh my God…Mom, get Dad a pair of shoes with heels on it! He’s the one needing them, not me!_

  My dad began to escort me to the place where Manu stood. People _ooh_ ed and _ahh_ ed when they spotted me with the dress, towering over my own father. Manu was slightly teary-eyed at the sight of me. I tried to look down instead. I didn’t want to see such flawless face for too long. As I reached the front, the officiant began talking.

“Dearly beloved,we’re gathered here today…”

The rest was a blur. I was focusing on my feet instead of on Manu. My heart was going a mile a second. _Can we get over with this, please?_

“You may exchange your vows.”

I took a deep breath. So did Manu.

 “I promise to be your lover, companion and friend,

Your partner in parenthood,

Your ally in conflict,

Your greatest fan and your toughest adversary.

Your comrade in adventure,

Your student and your teacher,

Your consolation in disappointment,

Your accomplice in mischief,

Forever and always.”

Everybody clapped their hands. Thomas was whistling loudly. “Yeah,Manuel!” . I could hear Lisa, his wife, asking him to calm down.

Next, Manu took my hand and inserted the white gold ring with an infinity sign covered with tiny diamonds on my ring finger. He then kissed my hand.

 “Yes,yes!” It was Thomas again, followed by the crowd’s applause

“With this ring,I thee wed.”

The officiant made it official. “I now pronounce you husband and wife.”

Silence. The air was suddenly hot and tense. Beads of sweat trickled down my cheek. I could tell that they were waiting for the kiss.

  Our eyes met before Manu tilted his head and leaned slowly on me. I closed my eyes. As he got closer, I could smell white musk. His smooth lips pressed in on mine as I heard his heartbeat racing. My breathing became unstable as I grabbed the back of his suit really hard. Manu’s right hand ran through my hairbun , unclipping the bobbypins, and let my hair come loose. The left hand traced my spine. Time stopped for a while. Then, he brought my hair to the side, pulled away, and smelt my hair. “ My queen.”

I blushed. “My king.”

Everybody gave us a standing ovation,and Thomas whistled even louder. “Yeah,Manuel! That was what I came here for!”

“Shut up, Thomas. Tell him later,will you?” Lisa pulled him to the chair. She was grinning playfully as she said those words.

The officiant wrapped things up with a couple of words, and the ceremony ended. The song _Sky Full of Stars_ boomed across the pitch.

“Were you nervous in the ceremony?” Manu held my hand and smiled.

“Very. How about you?” I laughed.

“Yeah, kind of.”

“Manuel! Hey,man! Congrats dude, that kiss was amazing! Did you train yourself or something? Totally worth watching.” Thomas jogged as he gave Manu a high-five.

“Uh,thanks,dude.” Manu simply couldn’t hide his happiness.

“Congrats,Bel. You’re hella lucky you got this dude. He’s perfect for ya.” Thomas shook my hand.

My face turned tomato-red. “Thank you.” I wanted to hide my face in my hands, afraid that people might notice how red it was.

Lisa came behind her husband. “Hey, Bel. Congratulations.”

  I remembered that time when all I wished for is to be a pretty WAG like Lisa Mueller. _Being physically beautiful and having a cute footballer as your husband are honestly the best things ever,_ I thought to myself. And, I was standing here, beside the love of my life, who happens to be a footballer as well. _Dreams do come true, don’t they?_

“Ah, thank you very much.” I beamed.

  We got a lot of hugs, _congrats_ , and pats on the shoulder, especially from our families and of course, the Bayern family. Anna Lewandowska, Claudia Lahm and Julia Vigas even embraced me. I couldn’t believe that now I’m part of the group of Bayern wives. Never before had I imagined this happening.

  After that, we took a picture with all the people present in the party. First,with our families. Second, with the bridesmaids. Third, with people related to FC Bayern and Germany National Team. Fourth, with everybody else that didn’t take a picture with us.

My sisters dashed towards me.

“Congratulaaaaaaaaaaatiooooooons!” All three of my sisters squeezed me tightly. “Love you!”

“Thanks guys. Love you too.”

One of the twins whispered, “Your husband is so hot. Damn it. You’re _so_ fortunate.”

“I know.”

“I want a dude like him in the future.”

“Well,I hate to tell you this , but the most flawless one is taken.” I snickered and stuck my tongue out at her.

“Oh,shut up.”

“Bel,congrats! Hope you will be together forever!” Tania put me in her embrace.

“Amen,Tan.”

After the picture-taking session ended, the invitees devour the food that was available on the stands.

“You hungry? You like Chinese food,right?” Manu brought a plate full of stir fried noodles on his right hand, and a mountain of cookies and chocolates on his left.

 _How does he know I’m hungry?_ I didn’t eat breakfast this morning because I was too sleepy and nervous.

“Yeah. I’m not hungry,I’m _starving_.”

He handed me both plates. “I know people like chocolates and cookies, so I told Mom to make it for them. I thought you’d try it as well.”

“Wow, thanks.”

“Kein problem. Do you want me to get something else for you?”

“Nah, I’m good. Let me get you some pizza.”

“It’s fine, really. I’ll get myself some.”

“Shush. Sit down and guard my food.” I said as I rushed to the food stands.

Instead of sitting down, Manu chased me. “You’re wearing high heels!”

I took my heels off and continued running.

People were dumbfounded at the sight that met their eyes.. _A newly-wed couple chasing each other on a football field. Something that you don’t see very often._

I stopped at the pizza stand as Manu was closing in. I grabbed 3 slices, put it on a plate, and stretch my hand in front as far as I could. Manu came to a halt.

“I win.” I snorted with laughter.

“I can’t believe I couldn’t catch you. I’m the athletic one here, not you.”

“Never underestimate me.”

“Noted.” He popped a whole slice of pizza into his mouth.

“I didn’t know you are this _disgusting_ when it comes to eating food.”

“Whap, a wove poob.” _What? I love food._ Manu replied with his mouth full.

The party lasted until the night came. At 10 A.M, the stadium began emptying itself.

I yawned, my head on his lap. “What a day.”

“Best day of my life, to be honest.”

“I agree.”

Manu cut out a part of the net, covered ourselves in it, grabbed my cheeks and pulled me closer when Dad shouted, “Let’s get in the car, shall we? The cleaners are gonna clean up the mess, don’t worry. You both , keep _that_ for later.” He pointed at us.

Manu took the net away and giggled.”Okay, sir.”

I slept the whole way to the apartment, and the next thing I knew, I was sitting on the balcony with my short, red dress on, gazing at the gleaming stars on the Munich sky. The most fun part of the night is yet to come.

“Ya ready? Come on in.” Manu smirked.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos and comment on my fic!  
> Chapter 11 has been posted so pls read it! <3


	11. Birthday Gift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Bel's 22nd birthday,and the day has more surprises then she expects.

_Three years later.._

“Happy Birthday." Manu took off the blindfold.

In front of me was a red five tier cake. The words _Happy Birthday Belinda_ were written on the first tier. FC Bayern and Germany National Team logo decorated the second tier. Above it, the number 22 stood out in white. The fourth story had an infinity sign on it, which reminded me of Manu's 30th birthday cake. The tiniest part of the cake, which was, of course, the uppermost part, had a little figure standing on top of it. A woman with long black hair, white skin,and brown eyes. She was wearing a lab coat and holding a test tube full of blue liquid. A chemist, perhaps. I realized that the figure was none other than myself. The rest of the cake was covered in tiny white stars.

"This cake is so cool!"

Manu nodded. 

I scanned around where I was sitting. I was in a... terrace. Of a house. Overlooking a huge garden and a swimming pool. 

"Where on earth am I?"

"You guess."

"A house?"

"That's obvious. Be specific."

Be specific? Okay. _Whose house is this?_  I gave a wild guess. "Our new house?"

"Yup." He beamed.

"You've gotta be..joking." He had never ever told me _anything_ about a new house.

"You know too well that I don't joke a lot." He grinned.

"Since when the actual _heck_ did you keep this secret away from me?"

"Since the day we were married. The construction began a month after that."

"Oh my God, Manuel! That stupid blueprint I found on your desk last year. How come I was never suspicious of it? Oh dear,oh dear...I'm so dumb."

Manu's forehead wrinkled. "Wait,you actually _found_ the blueprint?"

"I didn't _find_ it,idiot. I saw it _lying_ on your desk."

Manu put his palm on his head. "Mein Gott, I'm so dumb."

"Tell me something I _don't_ know." I pushed his shoulder playfully.

Then, he sang a Happy Birthday song for me. He sounded really funny when he sang it. Afterwards, he took pictures of me and the cake from his iPhone. 

"Before you post that on instagram, do I look good on that photo?"

He rolled his eyes. "Oh please, Bel. You look flawless all the time."

"Oh, shut up."

"Don't be modest. Four years since the first time I met you and you still won't admit it."

I sighed and changed the subject. "Are we gonna cut the cake or not?"

He took a knife. "Which part do you want?"

"No idea. Just cut any part."

He cut the back of the cake and handed a plate full of it to me. "Not to ruin the front part for you. Let's eat the back first."

I recognized that the cake's inside was actually chocolate ice cream. _Yum._ Manu knew just what I truly love. _I guess spending 4 years with a person does make you learn a lot about him/her._ I snatched the plate and munched the cake.

"Yum. Did you make it?"

"I wish. But, I'm more into _eating_ it rather than making it." He giggled. "Do you want to have a tour around the house?"

"Sure. Eat the cake first."

"Look, I don't wanna eat too much cake. You know what happens if I do." He patted his tummy. He was definitely not the thinnest person I know, but I didn't give a crap about it. _Who cares? He still looks adorable._

I scooped up a huge chunk of my cake. "Say Aaa.."

"No."

"Manuel.."

He replied, "Alright." as he opened his mouth. I popped the cake in. His lips were smeared with chocolate around it. There were stains too on his cheek and his T-Shirt.

"You could've opened it _wider_. Now look at you,with chocolate everywhere. Like a baby."

He chuckled and gulped the cake fast. "That was..very sweet of you to choke it all in. It's yummy, but not as yummy as Nutella. Gimme another spoon of it."

"Well,I thought your mouth is huge." I smirked. "Here you go,Nutella guy." I passed him the spoon.

"The ice cream cake,not the spoon."

"Aren't you supposed to feed the birthday girl here? Anyways, it's not like I'm complaining." I said sarcastically.

"Love you too." He took another spoon, scooped a piece of the cake and put it in my mouth. 

"Now, that's how you do it."                                                                                          

We spoon fed each other until our tummies screamed to stop eating. 

"I can't believe there's only half of it left." Manu guffawed so hard he almost fell off the chair.

"Oh well." I chortled along.

Next, we entered the house. It was a two-storey house, with 3 bedrooms,3 bathrooms,and lots of other rooms. It also had a couple of yards, balconies, and a swimming pool. 

First, we got into the living room. It was full of space and elegant, with 3 long light grey sofas , a broad carpet of the same color, and dark grey table and cushions .The walls were covered in white paint. There were glass doors that lead to all sides of the house. Last but not least, there was also a glass staircase that led to the rooms upstairs. It was a minimalist home. Just my style.

"Whoa...Did you actually design this whole place?"

"Yas."

"Dude,this is amazing! I absolutely love it! It really suits my taste!"

Manu breathed a sigh of relief. "Glad you loved it."

Then, we went into the kitchen that was connected to the dining room, just the opposite of the staircase.

The kitchen, as I expected, was themed white. Simple but clean. The dining room had a different theme, though. It had a touch of warm brown wood on the benches and the table. The whole place was surrounded by courtyards, which made it look really open.

Next, we headed upstairs to our new bedroom. I gasped. 

The master bedroom faced a balcony full of green plants and a light brown armchair. The dark grey bed frame was really short, and it wasn't massive. However, I didn't mind not having so much place to sleep, because the smaller the bed mean Manu's body could be closer to mine. There was a thin, black lamp stand next to it. The wardrobe was on the corridor beside it, facing a tall and narrow window. Afterward, we went to another corridor that led to the bathroom. On the right side, there was a jacuzzi while on the left, there were wash basins shaped like white boxes.

"Ohhhh my Goddd..." I put my hands on my cheeks, unable to accept what was in front of my own two eyes.

Then, we walked in the master bathroom. It had the same theme as the rest of the house. There was a bathtub covered in grey tiles, just like the floor. A pale wooden mat was lying on it. Next to the bathtub was a tall and narrow glass window. The mirror was on the adjacent white wall, along with the ladder towel rack to add more wood accent. Opposite the wall, of course, was the toilet.

"I have something else to show you. You'll love it." 

"Bring me to it." I grinned.

The next thing I knew, I was in my very own library, complete with shelves of books on every inch of the wall. A white sofa and a short grey table were in the middle of the room. It had a beautiful view of the garden below. _Ahhh..my dream library._ It also included my all time favorite series: _Harry Potter, Percy Jackson and The Olympians, Heroes of Olympus,_  and _The Maze Runner._ In the corner of the library was a clothes' hanger with a... _robe?_ I picked up the robe and noticed the Slytherin badge on it. "I.....I...."

"Look above." 

A Deathly Hallows clock, hanging just above the door. Below it were posters of Harry Potter quotes. One of them was _Always? Always._ with a silver doe beside it. My tears welled up. I dashed to hug him. "Manuel.... Oh my God... Thank you...This is the best birthday ever!"

"I know you like books and Harry Potter a lot, so...." He embraced me tighter."We're not done yet, though."

I glanced up. "What?"

"Check out the gallery."

I opened the door of the next room. The gallery. It was enormous, just like every other room. Pictures of Manu and his team over the years, including his jerseys, were framed and put in a horizontal line on the walls. On each corner of the gallery, there were shelves of individual trophies that he has. 

"Aw,pretty." I felt like my 18-year-old self again, fangirling on every single thing in the FC Bayern's gallery. Except that now I was in Manu's gallery.

"The two bedrooms are still empty, by the way. One of them is obviously for our...um, first child. Uh,I have something to give you. Hang on." He said as his hand rummaged through his pocket. "Here."

I froze. _A pregnancy test kit?_ _Whoa. I did not see that coming._ Sure,I missed my period by one week, and I had a little bit of nausea,but to test it so early? 

"Oh.Okay.I'm gonna do it now." 

I did the test quickly and left the stick on the bed. "Right. Let's wait for about 10 minutes." I said as I grabbed a pan to cook. I could tell from Manu's face that he looked just as nervous as I was. Maybe even _more_ nervous. I was aware that he wanted a baby since forever ago, but I told him _later, when I'm turning twenty-two._

_Now that I'm twenty two...It has to come sooner or later,I guess. I can’t be sure if I’m ready._

I took a deep breath.

"Wait. I made something for you." 

On the table was a whole bowl of macaroni and cheese.

"Wow. Thanks."

"No prob. I ate a plate of it before you came, so don't worry about me. Gotta go,uh,to the loo." He left the room. 

I devoured the mac & cheese in silence, trying not to think about the test.

All of a sudden,I heard a scream and quick, loud footsteps into the kitchen.

"Bel!" He rushed, in,holding the stick."You're pregnant!"

I held my breath. Time stopped for what seemed like forever. "Wh- what?"

"Yes!" He showed me the two red lines on the stick as I gaped at it, unable to speak.

 _I...I can't believe it. I could hardly believe that we have a new house. And now,we have a...baby? All surprises just opened up at once. On my birthday. I have a child with Manuel Neuer. Manu's baby,in my womb. Our baby._  I felt like I was showered with birthday gifts.

Manu sat right next to me, and put his hand on my tummy. "Do you think it's a boy or a girl?"

"I have no clue."

"What gender do you want the baby to be?"

"Uh.." _I’ve always wanted a son, since I don't have a brother to take care of. I only took care of my young cousin…But my cousin loves me like I’m his sister, which tells me something. I’m good at dealing with little boys._

He kissed my cheek and forehead. "Finally, in a matter of months, we'll be parents. Can't wait." He placed his arm on my hip.

"Me too. Don't be too happy about it, though. I'm afraid that we might jinx it. Plus, we have to go to the doctor just to make sure. We don't want false news,right?"

"Correct. Let's go."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos or comment on this fic!  
> Chapter 12 has been posted btw :D


	12. Day of Departure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was just a normal Sunday for Bel and Manu..until things go at an unexpected turn.

It was a beautiful Sunday, as I sat on the terrace floor,feeling the cool breeze as it brushed on my cheeks. I was taking a rest after cleaning the gallery,the bedroom,and the kitchen. I usually helped Manu clean the whole house every Sunday, but now that my tummy had gotten significantly bigger over the past 3 months, I did easier tasks than I normally do. Manu told me to have a rest instead and let him do all the work. And of course,I refused. 

"But that's too much for you." Manu complained.

"Shh. I'm okay with it. You can help me later."

Anyways,Manu was sweeping a part of the terrace near where I was sitting when he got a call. "Hello?......What? Why? ......But,how about my wife?.... Do I have to go tomorrow?..Uh.Okay."

"Bel?" Manu took a seat right beside me. "I don't know how to start this off. Uh,I just...got a call..from the coach...that the national team should travel to Qatar tomorrow."

I gasped. "But...why?"

"He said we have to get used to the camp,the country,the weather,everything. Also it'll help us build our mentality and strength for the upcoming matches."

"Weird. Didn't we get used to Qatar already,I mean,with the Bayern winter camp and everything?"

He shrugged. "Well,yeah,but not all of us are in FC Bayern."

"But there's still like.. around two weeks until the World Cup starts. That's such a strange decision to go there this early."

"I know..maybe it's for the team's good. After all,we wanna win three consecutive World Cups,don't we?"

"I do,but.."

Manu set both of his hands on my shoulders. "Look,I'm sorry I have to leave you alone here. I wish you can go with me...but the thing is, you can't go on the plane when you're 7 months pregnant. Bel,Germany needs me. I'm still their number one."

I sighed. _I have taken a huge risk by marrying the best goalkeeper in the world,who is constantly busy when it comes to his job. Bayern and Germany depend on him. But...I also depend on him. But,I guess career is everything._ "Right.Okay."

"I'll call Mom to come here and take care of you while I'm gone."

"It's fine. I can take care of myself."

He ignored the statement and called his mom. "Hello?....Yeah,I need to fly to Qatar tomorrow with the national team. Can you please stay with her until I come back?...Okay,thank you."

Then,he called Marcel. "Brother,can you come help out on stuff in here? I have to go to Qatar tomorrow and my wife and Mom will be here. I think they'll need some extra help.    Just make sure you come when they need you. You don't have to stay in Munich all the time, it's fine. Just come whenever they need you.....Okay then."

He sat on the couch. "So,my mom will arrive here tomorrow morning. And Marcel will be there when you need him. Just give him a call."

"Right." I said as I attempted to not break into tears.

"Bel,you okay?"

"Um,just nauseous." I lied.

"I'm sorry, I'm really,really sorry. This whole thing is so unexpected. This stupid World Cup...is ruining European football and pretty much everything else. I should've retired before this-"

"No."

"What?"

"Bayern and Germany need you."

"I know,but..I can tell that you need me more than they do. You're pregnant,Bel. You need your husband to be beside you more than anyone else. Especially that you only have at most two months until you give birth. And now...I have to go for this stupid World Cup and leave you alone like this. This is horrible. Family is everything,Bel. I spent so many years focusing on my career....And,I just feel guilty about all this. I'm sorry for being so selfish. You know what? I might as well tell my coach I'm retir-"

"Manu."

"Yes?"

"You're a great husband.And don't worry about me. I'll be fine with your mom and brother. Focus on your job. Win the World Cup for me. Our son and I will always be with you wherever you go,even if we're not present physically." I laid my hand on his heart.

"I promise I'll win the World Cup for you. My heart will always be yours." He did the same to my heart.

Then,he kissed my forehead and tummy and said, "I love you both. You're the best. I'm gonna pack my stuff up for tomorrow."

"Love you the most." I pecked his cheek. "Let me help you pack."

Meanwhile, his phone buzzed again. He glanced at it. "Wait. Gotta go to bedroom first. It's Thomas."

He hurried upstairs with the phone in his hand. Only when he landed on top of the stairs did he respond to the call. "Babe- I mean, Thomas, It's Manu. Why did you call me? Did the coach call you?......Oh. Okay. What time should you pick me up tomorrow?...... Sure.Goodbye."

I followed him to the room and silently began placing his clothes in his suitcase when the thought of Tania staying in my house popped in my head. I truly missed her. Ever since the day we graduated a year ago, we had never met each other again even though we Skyped each other a lot. Now, she was working as a teacher in Hamburg.

"Can I invite Tan over so I won't be alone?"

"Good idea. She can stay here for as long as I'm gone,by the way. I know you didn't see her for a while,and you might want to spend quality time with her,just like the good old days."

"Yeah..I do. Thanks,hun."

After packing, I decided to call Tan right away. I told her that Manu was leaving and I'd be left with only Manu's mom and,possibly,his brother,and she was allowed to stay in my house as long as Manu is out.

"What? You're not serious,right?"

"I am."

"Okay. I'll arrive at your house tomorrow morning."

"Good. See ya tomorrow!" 

**************************

The sun had just emerged over the horizon as the honk of a car filled my ears. Manu,dressed in his bathrobe,quickly went out of the bathroom door. "Oh my God,it's Mom!"

I got out of bed and peeked out the window. I caught sight of a black car parked in front of the house. A woman with short,blond hair walked out of the passenger's door, carrying a navy blue suitcase. Manu's mom. But, she wasn't alone. A man with short, dark hair came out of the driver's door. Marcel,Manu's brother. _Didn't Manu say that Marcel is only going to come when we need help? Why is Marcel here?_

"You're _not_ gonna show up in front of your family like _that._ " I giggled as I pointed at his bathrobe.

"Nah. I'm just gonna wear a T-shirt and shorts for now."

Minutes later,the bell rang. I rushed toward the door as Manu opened it. 

"Hey!" Marcel beamed and shook both of our hands,followed by Manu's mom.

"My son,my pride and joy. I can't believe you're going to be a father soon." She embraced her older son.

"Hello,dear. Long time no see." She also gave me a warm hug.

"Bro! You look fresh and neat!" Marcel gently slapped his brother's cheek.

Manu chuckled. "Dude, I just came out fresh from the bathroom."

"Hi. Nice to see you again." I hugged Manu's mom tighter.

"The baby is getting bigger,I see." She rubbed her hand on my baby bump. 

"Yeah. I'm on my 7th month. You may sit down and let me bring you some tea."

"Oh no,no. It's alright. Sit down."

Manu put the last of their suitcases in the living room when he said "Okay, people,gotta dress up ASAP. Thomas is gonna come pick me up in 30 minutes."

I led the guests to their bedrooms and helped them unpack while Manu got ready. 

Right after he brought his suitcase near the main door,the bell rang again. 

"Yo,Manu. Let's go." Thomas grinned. "Hey,Bel." He waved his hand at me.

"Hello."

"Whoa, that bump. Manu, your son's really growing,doesn't he?"

"Yup.Hang on, Thomy. Lemme have a word with my wife."

He turned his eyes on me and sobbed a bit before eventually whispering, "Bye,honey. Take care. Remember my promise." 

He put my body in his embrace. I stood on my toes and let his wet lips close in on mine. Tears were trickling down on our cheeks as we pulled closer,our lips pressed slightly harder on the other,our hearts beating faster. I rested my hand on the back of his head for support while his hand stroked my hair. I didn't want to let go. Neither did he. But after what felt like forever,I replied "I will. And remember what I told you yesterday. My heart will always be yours. Have a safe journey and may the World Cup trophy be yours." I looked at Manu,then at Thomas, who,unsurprisingly,didn't mouth a word after witnessing that kiss. "I know you guys can do it."

"Thanks for the encouragement,dear." Manu smiled. 

Thomas spoke up. "I forgot to tell you this,but Lisa is there whenever you need help. You've got her number,am I correct?"

"Yeah, I think I have hers. Thanks,though."

"Kein problem." Thomas winked.

"Bye." Manu blew a kiss.

"Bye." I sobbed as Manu disappeared in Thomas's car,unable to know whether I would ever see him again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos and comment on my fic! Tell me what you think!<3  
> Chapter 13 has been posted. Check it out! x


	13. Marcel Neuer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The presence of Manu's brother has gotten the best friends lovestruck. The problem is,he only has a crush on one of them...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to my sister bc she loves Tania a lot.

It was just a week after Manu left,and I was already missing him more than ever despite _Skype_ -ing him every night. This night,however, I could spot Thomas in the background, sitting on the bed behind Manu. His attention turned from the book he was reading, to me. Quickly,he took a seat right next to Manu in front of the laptop screen, and gave me a goofy grin.

"Thomas, get out. God..." Manu rolled his eyes.

"Shut up. Hey,Bel. Your husband is mine for a while. " Thomas said as he winked.

"Thomas!" Manu pushed Thomas a little hard,still giggling.

"Dude, calm your butt down. I'm only saying hi to her. How's the baby?"

I gently stroked my baby bump. "He's okay, thank you very much."

"Thomas,are you done yet?"

"Done with what?"

Manu let out a huge sigh. "Dude.."

Thomas's forehead wrinkled for a while, but he finally seemed to get it. "Alright.Fine...fine.." He walked back to the bed and turned on the TV.

"If you wanna stay here, be quiet,yeah? And don't eavesdrop."

"Right." Thomas nodded.

Manu turned back to me. "So,how's everything?"

I thought about those lonely days when Tania sleeps beside me instead of him. Okay,Tania is there,alright,but she wasn't the same Tania I met years ago. She was just... _different_. More serious,less cheerful. She just went straight to sleep at night instead of having night-talks as we usually do before. Maybe,it was because of a lot of things that were going on in her life. Being a teacher is certainly not that easy. Dealing with flirty boys who are Tan's students....not her cup of tea. _I have a boyfriend,you know_ , she used to say. Thing was,she broke up with him a month ago. She said she was about to give up on life when she got a call to stay with me while Manu is gone.

"I'm gonna find you a great occupation and a boyfriend,maybe Manu's teammate." I pledged.

Her smile bloomed. "I might not have the best life ever, but I have the best friend ever. You."

Then, there was Marcel. A cute,charming guy,just like his older brother. He reminded me of Manu a lot. His honesty,reliability,wittiness...I couldn't stop thinking about him every night. It was as if he had taken over Manu's place,but I refused to think about that. Nobody could ever replace Manu,not even his own brother.

"Bel?"

Snap. _Back to Earth,Bel.._

"Uhm, everything is fine. Don't worry about it." I sounded...odd. Weird. "How is it there?"

Manu hesitated for a while,before continuing "It's okay."

I could tell from his voice that he was lying. "Come on,you're not okay."

He took a deep breath. "It's just that...I don't know..My worries about you and our son's wellbeing are kinda taking its toll on me."

"Trust me. We're fine. Your mom,Marcel,and Tania have been a great help to me. Just focus on your work. Okay? You've got the World Cup to win. Remember what I said."

"Yeah...you're right."

I had a list of possible baby names and he had his. We took turns reading them out loud to each other,asking whether the names were good enough. Eventually,we came up with one perfect name and greeted goodbye for the night.

***********************

"You were dead on the bed. I tried to wake you up like ten times this morning." Tania chuckled as I walked to the kitchen, still rubbing my eyes.

"Well,I'm sorry. I video-called Manu until midnight,what do you expect?"

"Oh,hello,Belinda." Manu's mom beamed at me while stirring the pan. "Sit down. I've cooked roast beef."

The only empty chair was next to Marcel. I took a seat. 

"Hi." Marcel gave his sheepish smile.

"Hello."

"Here you go." Mrs.Neuer put a full plate on the table. "Marcel,don't take it. It's Belinda's."

"I won't. This is for you." He stroked my hair gently. "I like your hair.It's so soft."

I gazed at Tania. She frowned and looked down at her food blankly. Uh oh.Something is wrong. 

"Can I talk to you later,maybe just the two of us?"

_What?_

"Sure."

Seconds later,Tania left the room, leaving the unfinished food behind.

Oh _God._

"Hang on. I have to go to-uh,bathroom." I told Marcel as I sprinted out to follow Tania.

I came to a halt when I caught sight of her, sitting on the bench in the backyard. I settled down beside her.Her eyes were full of tears, but she rubbed it off every time a tear rolled on her cheek. I'd never seen her look so dejected before.

"I...can't believe...Marcel likes you more than me." She wept.

 _Marcel likes me? Oh no no no. That's not even possible. I'm his brother's wife. You've gotta be kidding. Who the actual heck wants to take his brother's wife away from him?_ "No,you don't understand. He's my brother-in-law. He didn't mean to-"

"No. It doesn't matter if he's your brother-in law or not, but something is obvious. He likes you. I know it. I tried to flirt with him a couple of times when you weren't there, but it didn't work. When you're there, he always compliment you. And when I say _always_ , I mean _every single freaking time_. Didn't you _ever_ notice that he actually is attracted to you?" 

It all came back to the memories of the past seven days. Tania was right. I had been showered with compliments. _Your hand is as smooth as silk, he commented. I like your dress. I like your hairbun. I didn't know you're this tall. You're such a sweet person. Thanks,beautiful. You look stunning in that flower crown. I like your hair. It's so soft._

"Well..not really."

"You're so bloody clueless!" Tania stood up and stormed inside.

I didn't even bother chasing her. I wanted to give her sometime to think for herself,calm down, and realize that she had misunderstood this whole Marcel thing.

Out of nowhere,he was seated alongside me. "You cool? I heard a fuss back here."

"Yeah. It was Tania,screaming at me." I shook my head with guilt.

"Why?"

"Uh..a little problem.Something that you don't have to know."

He took both of my hands together above his hand. "What is it? Come on, I'm your brother-in-law. I'm part of your family. I can help you."

I tried not to look at his eyes this time,because I knew I'd be looking straight at Manuel Neuer's eyes. I have a weakness for blue-eyed people.Focus on your hand, your shoes,anything. Anything but Marcel.

"It's cool, really."I shrugged it off.

"Is it because of my presence?"

There it was again, Marcel's invisible force,just like Manu's, was pushing me to reveal the truth.Sometimes I just thought whether Manu was really in Qatar, because I felt his presence all along, in the form of Marcel. 

I breathed a sign and started it off. "You're fine with me,but not to her." 

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know.It's just..ugh. This sucks. Where do I start?" Long,deep breath."She thinks you have a crush on me, you know,being cute with me and all that...and she's kinda jealous,I think. Thing is, she likes you,but she's not sure whether the feelings are mutual because you seem to like me more."

Marcel beamed. "Of course I love you."

Uh-oh. _He actually...loves me? I have no idea how to respond to this. I still think that I'm a crap-looking woman,even though I'm Manu's wife. It's been years and I still don't get how Manu fell in love with such a dork like me. But having his brother, who also has a crush on me is just....way too weird._

I diverted the topic. "No,you don't get it. I'm your brother's wife. And by you being all nice and that, it might ruin my relationship with him and my friendship with Tania."

"So what? I won't tell anyone about this, I promise. " He held my face and pulled it steadily toward his. "Don't move."

I heard voices. _Voices._ Voices so loud it was going to blow my eardrums off. 

_Aaaaah! Noo! Bel! Stop it! He's not Manu! He's Manu's brother! Bel, wake up! You can be left guilty for life if you don't stop this!_

Footsteps. _Tania is coming!_

_Five centimeters.Four,three,two,one._

"Bel?" Unmistakably, it was Manu's voice. All the voices that I heard were all in my head.

I held my breath and pulled away before our lips even touch. Tania was standing on the other side of the glass,stupefied.

She ran.

"Tania!" I rushed behind her.

She didn't answer until we got back to the bedroom.

"I'm going back to Hamburg,I don't care! You don't need any more help from me! You've got your new boyfriend, so ask him!" She shouted as she furiously threw all her clothes in her suitcase.

"Marcel is not my boyfriend!"

"Oh yes, he is! What were you doing right there? Doing some mushy stuff, huh?"

"That was Marcel,Tan! He pulled my freaking face without warning! I refused to kiss him in the end! I don't want him!"

"But he wants you!"

"Who the heck cares? I have Manu, who is the better one of the brothers,anyway. And no, I'm not attracted to Marcel,thank you."

Tania's facial expression changed. She appeared...heartbroken. Miserable. As if all the happiness was sucked out of her. I could see all the memories -the memories of her cursed love life- flash before her eyes. She crashed down onto the floor with her palms on her hands, whimpering.

"Tan?" I helped her onto a chair.

"Don't touch me, you ungrateful little b*****!" She yanked her hand away from my grasp and grabbed the knife on the table.

"Tan,no!" I snatched the knife away from her. "Now what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"I don't know. Kill myself,maybe?"

I threw the knife out of the window. "Right. Listen to me-"

She hurried out of the room.

"Taniaaaaaa!"

Oh no,she's going upstairs!

"Marcel! Marcel! Help me rescue her!" 

Soon enough, he dashed right up the stairs,outrunning me. "Tania! Tania!"

Tania stopped dead on her tracks. "Marcel?"

Marcel caught up and put her in his embrace. "Tania,why are you doing this?" 

"I....I..I'm sorry. I was just...I don't know what I'm doing." She sobbed on his shoulder.

"Never try to commit suicide again, promise me?"

"I'm not the best at promises, but I promise."

"Good. Now let's have a talk. We can solve this problem of yours."

And for the first time since Tan stepped into this house, she looked truly relieved.

******************************

"God,he's the nicest guy that I have ever met. I wanna be his girlfriend!" Tan said as we had our first night-talk in years. She hugged the pillow as if it were him. "I love him so much!"

"Did you tell him that?"

"Weelllllll...yeah.."

"And what did he say?"

"He says he loves me too! Yippeeeeee!" She did a backflip on the bed.

"I swear to God if you break this bed..." I snorted. "Anyways...does that mean what I think it means?"

"Hmm, maybe. I don't know. He didn't ask me to be his GF yet. Should I worry or not?"

"Nah, he'll ask you soon enough." I winked. "What if, just what if, you'll marry him and become another Neuer?"

Her jaw dropped. "Oh...my..God..I'll not only be your best friend,I'll literally be part of your family! Aaaahhhh...like a dream come true. You know what? I ain't gonna expect too much from this. I don't want to ever be disappointed again."

I twinkled,finally glad to have my old Tania back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos/comment on my fic!  
> Chapter 14 has already been posted,so check it out!


	14. The Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After around 1 and a half months of missing Bel's other half, the day that she has been waiting for has finally arrived. Manu comes back after the World Cup triumph.

I opened my eyes. My head throbbed with pain as I pulled my head away too quickly from the comfort of the bed.

I had a dream of Manu. He was holding the World Cup trophy, and his teammates were cheering for him. The chant of his name endlessly echoed through the stadium after the last penalty save. 

_Was this just a dream?_

Just as I placed my feet on the cold floor, Tania entered the room. Her messy blond hair was open, and her eyes were red, swelling and wild. I could've been mistaken her for a zombie if I hadn't known that it was actually her. She looked like she had gotten hit by a truck, but she was grinning.

"Guten Morgen, _Weltmeister_ 's wife."

I blinked. _So, the dream was actually...real?_ Still clutching my head, I asked "Um, wait. We won the World Cup?"

"Of course." She gave me a hug. "Don't you remember the penalty shootouts? He saved the last one."

"Um, yeah, I did remember. Yeah." I looked at the mirror in front of me. I was still dressed in his green Germany National Team jersey, stained with red strawberry juice after that decisive save. It shouldn't have come as a shock to me, but at that time I was so tensed up that when Manu made the save, I choked and spit the juice all over the jersey. The blood-red splash made me appear like I had just murdered someone. Not a decent look for a pregnant woman, but pretty reasonable for someone who had gone crazy. His jersey might’ve been dirty, but I was too lazy to care after running around the house all night, celebrating.

 _You're pregnant, remember?_ Marcel and Tania warned.

But then again, I didn't care. _Not when your husband just won the World Cup again, and your mind is filled with so much excitement that there's no room for other thoughts._

"Is your tummy okay? You were out of your mind last night. My God, I didn't know you could go right insane." Tania asked.

I chuckled. My tummy hurt a bit, but I was sure nothing is serious. "Yep. No worries. The baby is probably used to his mom running around with joy by now."

She took a seat next to me and placed her hand on my baby bump.  "Bel, just be careful next time. You don't wanna harm the baby. "

"I won't, I promise." I winked.

"Alright, come on, Mom has cooked a special welcome-back food!"

“I wanna go to Fanmeile Berlin.” I frowned.

“Dude, you know you can’t, and you know why. I’m not going either, even though I want to.”

I couldn’t believe I was going to miss Fanmeile Berlin just because I was pregnant. It’s a stupid reason to miss it, I thought. I tried to persuade Manu that I knew the baby wanted to go too, but Manu still said no. _For safety purposes_ , he told me.  _Please, you don’t wanna harm the little one, do we?_

_Of course I don’t, but still…Manu is just being too protective._

I sighed. Now I had to wait until sunset. _That’s too long. Ugh._ I crossed my hand in front of my chest. Tania seemed to have read my mind.

“Don’t worry. He’ll be here by the end of today.”

_As if that statement is helpful for me to brush out my impatience._

Instead of arguing and stating a thousand reasons why I should meet him at this second, I just replied “Alright. Let’s go.”

We got into the kitchen, and there are so many different types of food on the table, ranging from German foodssuch as _Kartoffelsalat_ to Italian food such as _lasagna_. All of them, I’d recognized, are Manu’s favorite foods.

Unsurprisingly, Marcel was already seated, devouring the food. He waved at me and gestured for me to sit down.

“Woo mow,Mamu bib wewwy weww wefpedaw.”

Now that I understood Manu’s mouth-full language, I could translate that in a heartbeat. _You know, Manu did very well yesterday._

“OK. Seriously, Marcel. Don’t talk with your mouth full.” I said as he popped a large piece of chicken in his mouth, which reminded me of how Manu eats. “God, you’re _so_ like your brother.”

Marcel beamed and swallowed the food in one gulp. “Is that supposed to be a compliment or what?”

I chose not to respond.

“I know she means well.” Tania answered while she stepped on my foot.

“Ouch, you idiot.”

“Are you people going to eat your food or not?” Manu’s mom made her tone a notch higher, but she was still smiling at me.

“Sure thing.”

                                                                         **********************************

5 P.M.

I gazed out the window, my hand drumming on the freezing glass. The sun was already on the edge of the horizon, and the sky had a magnificent shade of orange-red on top of an ice white blanket of snow. I shivered, longing for his cuddly and warm hug.

_Ding dong._

I half sprinted out of the room when suddenly Tania stood in front of me, stretching her arms in both directions.

“Hey, hey... Calm down, mate. No running. You’re pregnant.”

I pushed her aside. I was sick of people being so overprotective. “Shut up, Tan. I’m okay. I need to meet him. Now. It’s been forever.”

From the corner of my eye, I spotted Manu’s mom, closing in on the door.

“No!”

She glared at me, at first. But then, she gave up and backed off, paving the way for me to walk to the door.

“It’s me.” That voice was, unmistakably, Manu’s.

I placed my trembling hand on the door handle and opened it, slowly. _Why am I shaking?_

Outside, Manu was standing with his white Germany National Team jacket and black trousers on. His cap, with a few snowflakes on it, was put backwards on his head. Typical Manu.  He looked exhausted, but his 100-million-dollar smile was still on.

Sure enough, I hugged him immediately. His intoxicating apple soap smell was still there as I buried my head on his chest.

“Manuel,” I sobbed.

He smoothed my hair, kissed my head, and rubbed my forehead gently. “I miss you so much.” 

There was a light sob, but it didn’t come from me. Something dripped on my shoulder. I bobbed my head up and found out that his blue eyes were full of tears.

“I miss you too. It hurts. It hurts just waiting here forever, without knowing if you’d ever come back.”

“I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.”

And we just stood there, in the terrace, crying over each other. I felt the others’ presence behind me. But, I didn’t mind. And neither did Manu.

After what felt like hours, I said, “Let’s walk together to the room.”

“Are you serious?”  Manu gasped as he saw my too-simple decorations on the room to welcome him back. There was a black, red and yellow banner written _Welcome Back! ,_ framed picture of Manu holding the golden trophy, and an extra replica of World Cup trophy to add to the two already sitting on the desk.  He held the frame and the trophy’s replica.

“Wow, this is impressive.”

 I smirked. “I did all the decorations last night. Sorry if they are too simple for you.  The baby just kept kicking despite his mother being too sleepy after the celebration.” I paused. “Anyways, congrats on the win. I know that I said this ten thousand times, but I couldn’t have been more grateful to have a hero as my husband.”

He smiled.” I couldn’t have done it without your support.”

“Aw.”

I had an urge to kiss him, but he read my thoughts and went in for it first. He pushed me gradually against the wall and kissed me hard. My lips hurt slightly, because I’m more used to his soft kisses. This time was an exception, though, because I wanted to have a hard one, and I got just that. _He really does know what I needed without me actually stating it verbally._

Fire burned in my soul, energizing it. _I felt alive._ I didn’t feel this way for more than a month _. Now, his strong aura is there again. It’s there again, and I’m glad for it. Everything is okay now. Nothing can stop us. Nothing._

My fingers tread slowly from his hair, down to his shoulder blades  and the curves along his hip. He did the same to me. Just trying to get used to each other’s presence.

We pulled away when there was a knock on the door.

Tania was holding two full mugs of steaming hot chocolate.  “Well, I thought you’d like some of these.”

“Perfect. Thank you.”  I closed the door and set the mugs on the table next to the window. 

“Look, it’s snowing.” Manu pointed outside.

“Beautiful. Here, have some hot chocolate.” I took a seat next to him and handed one of the mugs to him. “You know, I’m glad I have you back.”

“Me too.”

And we just sat there, gazing at the darkening sky, my head on his shoulder and his hands on my waist. Neither of us said a word, but having each other back was enough to end the day on a good note.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos or comment on my fic!  
> Chapter 15 has been posted, so check it out! x


	15. Our Son

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After 9 months of struggle, Bel finally delivers Manu's first baby. The couple's family and Manu's teammates paid their visit.

"Manuel, Manuel?" I mumbled. 

As soon as I woke up, I felt a surge of pain all over my body as I struggled to open my eyes. 

“Yes, dear. I'm here. I've been here all along."

There he was, sitting beside me, wearing a dull grey T-Shirt and white trousers. His dark blond hair was sticking out everywhere, and his face looked tired and full of worry. I could tell that he barely got his sleep, because his eyes were slightly red and had black circles all around them.

However, he grinned at me. His right hand was stroking my hair gently while his left squeezed my right hand.

“What's wrong? Did you sleep last night? How about our son?" I could barely get the words out. I was too exhausted.

"It's fine, don't worry about me. You have to worry about yourself first. Look at your pale face. You look…really sick. Our son is perfectly healthy, don't worry. You need a rest." His smile was reassuring, but it didn’t stop me from begging him to see the baby.

"I wanna see our son. Did you see him?"  

"Yes. He's so flawless, just like you."  

My heart sank. _I don't want my son to look like me. I'm not flawless. Manuel is. I might be his wife, but it doesn’t exactly help boost my self-esteem, considering I know how most of the fans think about me. I want the baby to look just like Manu, with blue-tiful eyes and blond hair._

“Let me call the nurse to bring him here. Don't move." Manu said. 

                                                *********************************************************  

A while later, the nurse came in, pushing a baby bed with wheels. The bed was surrounded by clear glass, keeping whoever inside it safe.

_Here we go, I thought. Time to face the truth..._

"Congratulations, Mrs.Neuer." The nurse beamed.  

I reciprocated the smile, caught sight at the baby and gasped, speechless. I was staring straight at my little self, only with brunette hair and blue eyes instead of black hair and dark brown eyes. Stunning, or magnificent, wasn't enough to describe this baby. He twinkled at me, as if he knew I am his mother.

"So..." Manu approached me from the back.

The only word that came out of my mouth was "Wow."  

"I know."

I began to cry. Not because I was sad, but because I realized that I gave birth to Manuel Neuer's first baby _. I did it. I freaking did_ it. I was so overcome with joy that tears started to pour out of my eyes.  All the pain and struggle for 9 months, and the effort to deliver this baby were totally worth it. Manu put me in his embrace, and I could feel his tears running down my shoulders like a mini waterfall.

"I love you more than anything in this universe. Thank you for all those nine painful months." He sobbed. "Thank you. I don't know how I can ever pay you back. Even my money and my trophies can't ever repay this." "I promise to work harder not only for Bayern and Die Mannschaft , but also for us, for our son."

_Another promise. I’ve never liked people making promises ever since Tania broke the solemn oath. But, this is Manu, I told myself. Manu has never broken his promise, and I trust him like none other._

After what seemed like forever of just letting our emotions take over, there was a knock on the door. Manu released his embrace and walked straight to it, wiping his face with his dry sleeves. It was as if he wasn't even ashamed at the fact that the best goalkeeper in the world, who is usually a tough cookie on the pitch, wept.

My whole family (that consist of my dad, my mom, my sis, and my twin sisters), along with Manu's mom, Marcel, and Tania strolled in, bringing bags of food, baby clothes, chocolate, and fruits. Their faces brightened when they recognize me.

"Finally, you're awake!" Dad said. 

I smiled. "Manu, how long I've been out?"  

"Exactly 24 hours. They came earlier minus the food, and I told them you were asleep."

"No way. Sorry guys.” My eyes moved to the baskets of stuff that they brought. “Oh my God, you don't have to bring me this much stuff. Little is fine. I'm crazy about food, but it doesn't mean you _have_ to buy this much. I appreciate it, though.” I grinned with my perfect teeth shown _. I've been so proud of my teeth ever since I took off my braces a couple years ago. And ever since then, I always grin from ear to ear. Well, it's not wrong to show your teeth all the time, right?_

"Eat them all, will you? And let your dude eat them too!"  One of my sisters joked.

"I will, trust me. You know me well enough to know that.” I paused at the sight of my family, standing there, not saying anything. “Okay. Seriously guys, treat yourselves. Sit down, will you all?”

"God, since when are you so nice? Offering food to others isn't your thing." One of the twins was surprised.

"Well, I'm a mom now, so I gotta learn something,of course." I laughed.

Everybody clapped their hands."Good, good." Mom finally spoke up. "You have tons of things that you gotta learn from being a mom, trust me. You'll thank me for all the mom-trainings I gave you since you were little."

"Right, Mom. Right. Marcel, why are you so quiet? Eat some food, I know you're hungry."

"Nah, it's fine, I swear. I ate just now." He beamed.

“Tan, make him eat. Come on, Marcel, you’re never shy. I know that.”

“Bel, Marcel has already eaten McDonalds just before we arrived here. Calm down. He’s full now. Manu, why don’t you eat them?” Tania chuckled.

“Uh, nope. I’m good.” Manu shook his head. “I’m just gonna grab a chocolate.”  He picked up a chocolate bar and opened its wrapper.

All eyes turned on the baby bed.

“Can we see the baby?" the twins asked.

"Go ahead."

The whole group circled around the baby. I heard some _ooh_ s and _aah_ s from the crowd.

"Aaaw…so pretty!" "He looks like half-Manu, half-you." "Duh, they are his parents. So, of course the baby looks like both of them." "The eyes! Oh my Gooooooooodddd..." They couldn't even stop whispering to each other and gasping in awe while pinching the baby's cheeks. Surprisingly, he is still asleep. "Can we carry him?" "Please?" "Please?"

Finally, Manu said. "Sorry guys, the baby is asleep."

"Oh my god. We didn't notice that, sorryyyy.."

"Fine. Lemme get my phone to take his pic. My nephew, finally! Is it fine?" The other twin asked as she was rummaging through her bag to find her phone.

Manu's mom hugged me with tears in her eyes. "Congratulations, dear. I'm sure you'll be a good mom."Then she turned to Manu, hugged him, and patted him on his back. "Be a good father, yeah? I think you’re already a good one. After all, you’re used to dealing with kids in your kids foundation.”

Manu just nodded at her while I said “I agree. He’s gonna be the best dad ever.”

“Aw,” he giggled.

Then we talked about life of each of the family members while Manu and I are in the hospital. Mostly, though, they were talking about how it felt for me to deliver a baby for the first time. I had never felt this comfortable answering a lot of questions in a very long time. Questions were thrown at Manu too, being a new dad and all that. The sun set without anyone noticing, and night fell quickly.

“Alright. We have to go. Take care.” Dad finally greeted goodbye. The others followed and walked out of the room.

Five minutes later, the bell rang again.

“Oh, man.” Manu laughed as his teammates came in. Some of them were from FC Bayern and the others were from the German National Team. Thomas Mueller, Jerome Boateng, Mats Hummels, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Joshua Kimmich and David Alaba -to name a few of them.  Even Philipp Lahm, who had retired from football at that time, was present.  “Come in, come in.”

“Hey pal. Congrats.” Thomas was, unsurprisingly, the first one to speak up. He reached out to hug Manu, his hand pushing Manu’s head toward his left shoulder.  His other hand patted his back pretty hard, but I was sure he didn’t mean to hurt Manu. “Bro, I’m proud of you. You’re a dad now.”

Manu turned a shade of red. “Ah, thanks bro.”

Other players began to hug Manu and deliver their congratulations to him.

“So, how did you guys know all this? I didn’t post anything on Facebook or Instagram, or tell any of you about this. ” Manu asked as the guys took their seats.

“Please, Manuel. You’ve got a creepy friend here, and I think you should know that.” Thomas chuckled as he pointed to himself. The others cackled along. “I overheard you telling the coach that you’re gonna be off training for a few days to see your wife and the newborn.”

“You eavesdropper.” Manu gave Thomas a serious look, but he chortled after that. “Next time, please don’t eavesdrop.”

“I can’t help it. I didn’t eavesdrop on stuff in a very long time. Plus, you refused to tell me when your wife’s gonna deliver the baby, so I had to find a way to know that myself.”

“Why would you want to know that?”

“Because” Thomas grinned, pulled out a box wrapped with a red FC Bayern wrapper, and said “of this.” He handed it to Manu. “Open it.”

Manu sat next to me and opened the box. Inside were full baby-sized FC Bayern and Germany National Team kits in different colors: blue, black, green, white, and red.  And when I mean _full,_ I mean, full with shirts and shorts and shoes and little gloves. When he got to the bottom of the box, he found some more kits. Outfield players’ kits –FC Bayern’s home, away, Champions League, 1 st and 2nd Germany National Team kit -baby size, obviously. Each of them was with Manu’s last name and number written on the back, just like the goalkeeper’s kits.  Below them was a note.

_Congratulations to Manu for finally being a father! We’re happy for you. We don’t know whether your son is going to be a goalie or an outfield player, so we have sent you all the kits available as a gift._

_Hope you and your son like them!_

_Regards,_

_Thomas Mueller and Co. representing our family : FC Bayern and Germany National Team._

There was also _xoxo_ written in a different handwriting.

“Xoxo? Hugs and Kisses?”  Manu’s forehead wrinkled.

 “Oh, I wrote that one.” Thomas replied casually.

“I love it. Thanks, guys. For coming, and for the gift.” Manu beamed.

There was a mutter of _you’re welcome_ s and _no problem_ s from the dudes.

“Help yourselves.” Manu gestured to the basket of food on the side of the table. “I’m full.”

Thomas was already standing up to get the food while Phillipp said, “Nah, we’re good. Thomas, sit down.” Thomas gave Philipp a frown and ended up sitting down.   _Philipp might’ve not been the captain anymore, but everybody still listens to him anyway._

Then, they shared some football news and discussed a bit about the upcoming game against Dortmund three days from now.

Manu sighed. “Hope I’ll do fine against them. I didn’t train for a day, and I feel sort of useless already.”

“Ah, shush.” Jerome waved it off. “Manu, please, you’re the best goalkeeper in the world. You’ll do great.” This was followed by _yes_ es from the rest of the bunch.

“Oh, God, I forgot about the baby! Let’s go see him.” Thomas led the way.

There were more mutters of _cute_ s, _adorable_ s, _handsome_ s, and some words that I couldn’t quite catch. But, I was pretty sure they were good words.

“What’s his name?” Basti asked.

“Got a couple of names, but we haven’t agreed on one just yet. That’s one of the reasons why I don’t want to announce it in public…yet.” Manu spotted the clock. It was 9 p.m.  Basti seemed to read Manu’s mind. “Guys, let’s go home.”

His teammates greeted goodbye for the night and strolled out the door. Once again, Manu thanked them for coming.

 “You know, you can train tomorrow. I can be alone here. It’s fine.” I told him.

“What?” He scratched his head.

“Well, I was thinking about the game on Saturday, and decided to let you train with your teammates tomorrow. It’s for our own good. I don’t want us to lose against Dortmund.”

Manu chuckled. “I forgot for a second that you’re a die-hard Bayern fan. Nah, I’m gonna stay with you here for at least another day. You need me at times like this.”

“I’m okay with it, I swear. You can invite my family and yours over to take care of me. And anyways, you can always come back after training and stay with me for the night. Sounds good?”

“I’m staying.”

“Manu…”

“Yeah?”

“If we lose against Dortmund, I’m gonna blame myself for not letting you train with the team, so please don’t make me feel that way.”

“We’re not going to lose.” He said with confidence.

“Nothing is certain. What if we _do_ lose? I’ll never ever forgive myself for it.”

That last sentence got him. He appeared to be considering it. After five minutes of silence, he said “Alright.”

“Case closed. Phew.”

At the same time, the baby woke up. He spread his arms up in the air, yawning. Then, he was crying.

Manu lifted the child up. “I know what he wants.”

“It doesn’t take a genius to notice that. Milk.”

I cradled the delicate baby on my arms. His cry came to a halt as I started breastfeeding him.

“Speaking of that note,” I pointed at the note from the team which was laid on the table. “I can’t wait for our son to be your successor. He will be the best striker in history.”

He knitted his eyebrows. “Why not _the best goalkeeper in history?_ “

“Because,” I smirked. “his dad is _already_ the best goalkeeper in history. And no one can beat him, even our son.” I laughed.  “Plus, remember when you said that you wanna play outfield? And you got stuck in goal instead? Why not make your dream come true by letting our son fulfill the dream?”

“But, I scored, like, a fair amount of outfield goals so far in my career as a goalkeeper.”

“And is that enough?”

He decided to give that up. “Uh, no.”

“Look, I could _actually_ see a bright future ahead of us. The Neuers…we would rule the football world.”

“Totally.” He kissed my forehead and cheek, placed his head on the blanket that covered my legs, and drifted to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave kudos and comment on my fic!  
> Chapter 16 has been posted, so pls check it out!


	16. The Next Manuel Neuer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Austin Neuer's first football practice. Unfortunately, things didn't go as Bel had originally planned....

_5 years later…_

“Austin, it’s time for your first football practice. Come on.” I said as I patted his shoulder.

The nearly five-year-old boy grunted and sat down while trying to get his eyes adjusted to how bright the sun rays were. “Okay, Mom.”

“Good boy.” I picked him up from the bed and placed his body on the floor. “Alright. Time for shower.”

I was washing every inch of his fair skin and brown hair when suddenly his blue eyes twinkled and his chubby cheeks rose.  He was smiling. “Mom, what position am I going to be in the team?”

“I think I’ve told you this. Forward. Center forward, if possible.”

“Mom, why am I not a goalkeeper, like Dad? I _want_ to be like Dad. He’s so cool. I don’t want to be a center forward.” He shook his head disapprovingly.

“We’ve discussed about this, Austin. Plus, you’re amazing at scoring when you play against Dad. You’ll be a good goalscorer.”

“I know, but I’m also good at goalkeeping. Dad told me that.”

My thoughts wandered into sometime that week when Austin saved Manu’s three shots out of five.

“Austin,” I dropped my head as I felt a pang of guilt about forcing Austin to be an outfield player. _I’m not a good mom, am I?_

After all, _I_ was the one who forced Austin, not Manu. He knew nothing about all this. But I wanted to make Manu happy. _But, is this worth it?_

 The boy just nodded his head slowly, as if he was obliged to follow whatever his mom said. There was a flicker of disappointment in his eyes.

_Come on, Bel. Get yourself together. You don’t want to force Austin, do you?_

_But, what will Manu say if Austin ended up choosing to be a goalie? Will this cheer Manu up or the opposite?_

I breathed deeply and told my son, “Okay, baby. We can talk about this when we get there.”

“Sure, Mom.”

I got him out of the bathroom, dressed him up in a red t-shirt and red shorts, combed his thick but neat hair, put on his football boots, and walked him to the dining room. I placed a pair of gloves in his bag just in case.

“Mom, where’s Dad?”

“He’s in training. I think you should know that.”

“So, he won’t be with me in practice?”

“Uh, no.”

“He didn’t kiss me goodbye today.”

“You were asleep.”

“He usually kisses my forehead even if I’m sleeping.”

“I’m really sorry, honey. Dad is really busy today. He’s preparing for another big game. That’s dad’s job. Being a footballer is harder than you think.” Now, I wished I hadn’t said that last sentence. _That does not help encourage Austin._

“Will you drive me there?”

“Yes.”

“Will you watch me play?”

“Yes, my dear. Now, eat your breakfast.” I told him as I gave him a plate of eggs, sausages, baked beans, mashed potatoes and gravy. “You really need to eat a lot of protein and carbohydrates, especially for today.”

“Why, Mom?”

“Because that stuff on your plate gives you energy and helps you focus.”

“Mmm-hmm.”

I took a seat beside him. “Do you want me to spoon-feed you?”

“No, Mom. It’s alright. I can do it myself.” He beamed at me again.

_Little Austin really does appear like fetus Manu, except with brown hair instead of blond. Anyone can see Manuel Neuer in Austin._

“I just want to say I love you, Austin. You can be whatever you want to be. I’ll never force you into doing something you don’t want to do.” I said as I stroked his hair.

“I love you too, Mom.  I can be the best striker in the world, and I’ll make you and Dad proud.” His response stunned me. I was speechless.

_He loves his parents so much that he’s willing to give up his dream like that…_

When I finally found the courage to speak up again, I said “Alright. The choice is yours.”

I heard a sound of a baby crying. _Must’ve been Miranda, I thought._ I hurried to her room.

 “It’s okay, Mimi.” I cradled and rocked the tiny girl on my arms.

Nearly three-year-old Miranda, with almost the same appearance as her brother: brown hair and blue eyes, stopped crying.

“Good girl. Now, let me dress you up.”

Then, Austin, Miranda and I got in the car. I placed both of the kids in their respective car seats, fastened their seatbelts, sat down on the driver’s seat, and started the engine.

                                                                   ******************************

10 minutes later…

The horror of getting lost came down upon me when Austin asked, “Where are we, Mom?” as I desperately searched for any signs pointing at the football school.

I looked back at the wary Austin and sleeping Miranda on the backseat. “Uh, hang on, okay? We’re getting there.”

8:55 am. Five minutes left until training starts. Oh _no._

_Think, Bel. Think. Find a person to ask. Now._

First problem: I couldn’t find a single person walking down the sidewalk. Everyone probably got into their offices already. Second problem, I absolutely _suck_ at talking to people due to my low self-esteem. These led to the third and fourth problem, which are: 3) It would take more time for us to find the right way to school, and 4) Austin would be late to his training, which might mean…

**_“I remember getting lost with my mom. When we got there, I was already late to training. Since no one in the team wanted to be a goalkeeper, the coach asked me to stay in goal. Back then I was just a little boy, so I just said “Okay.””_ **

**Oh _god, Manuel…_** _I shook my head as a sixteen-year-old me continued reading the article._

I chose to call Manu. I wasn’t sure if he’d pick it up, but it might be worth the effort.

No one answered. I tried again for the second and third time. No answer.

“Aaaagh.”

_Think, Bel. Think, think, think…_

_Right. Lisa Mueller can help me._

“Hello, is this Lisa? Belinda is speaking.”

“Oh. Hello, Bel. “ She recognized the panic in my voice. “Are you okay?”

“Ah, no.  Not really. Does Leon go to football practice today?”

“Yes, I have arrived at the school. Why?”

“Um, I’m kind of…lost here. I’m bringing Austin to practice. Where is the school?”

“Oh, I thought Austin isn’t coming. Come quick, the training is starting. Where are you?”

I told her where I was, and she gave me the directions to get there. I drew the map quickly on my little notebook that Manu left on the car’s dashboard, looked at it, thanked her and hung up.

******************************

“There you go.” I breathed a sigh of relief as I stopped the black Audi car in front of the school. “Let’s go, Austin.”

Austin rested his head on his seatbelt with his eyes closed.

_How long have we been lost?_

I refused to look at the clock.

“Wake up, baby. We’ve arrived.” I gently touched his right cheek with the back of my hand to awaken him. I did the same for Miranda.

We stepped out of the car and proceeded to the school gates. I carried sleepy Miranda on my right arm while I held Austin’s hand on my left.

“Mom, I want to bring Teddy.” Austin pointed at the teddy bear beside his car seat before I locked the car.  “For comfort. Yeah, Mom?”

“I don’t know, Austin. This is a football practice. You have to be serious. Teddy might distract you. The coach might take that away from you.”

“No, he won’t. I’ll tell him I need Teddy for luck. And no, he won’t distract me.”

“Promise you’ll not cry if the coach takes it?”

“He won’t.”

“Austin...”

“Mom, he won’t. I promise.” He curled his pinky finger on mine. “Pinky-promise. There’s the field!” Soon, the little boy spotted the wide and fenced green pitch. He dropped his head down as soon as he noticed other kids playing. “No, we’re late.”

I kneeled down beside him. “I’m sorry, kiddo. I’m really, really sorry.”

Afterwards, we arrived at the fence’s door. There was a thin, blond-haired and pale-skinned woman standing in front of it.

“Good morning. Looks like somebody is late today. I’m Elena, the coach’s assistant.” She gave Austin a grin. “Nice to meet you, uh…”

“I’m Austin. Austin Neuer.” The boy held out his free hand and smiled at Elena.

Elena seemed to be checking something from the list and gasped. “Oh God, The Neuers! You’re Manuel Neuer’s son, are you? I didn’t…I didn’t pay attention to your last name until now. I apologize for being surprised.”

Austin just nodded.

“And this must be your mom and your sister, right?” Elena asked Austin while pointing at the baby I was carrying.

“Yes.”

“Come in, come in!” The assistant ordered as she opened the fence door. “Coach, we’ve got a possible goalkeeping prodigy here!”

The old but muscular coach, with short dark blond hair covered with a red cap, stopped writing notes, turned his head at the arrivals, and began walking toward us.

He kneeled in front of Austin and grinned. “Hello, my little friend. I’m Jonas. Austin Neuer, are you?”

“Yes.”

“Why are you holding a teddy bear?”

“Um, just for luck. I won’t play with it. It’ll just sit behind the net while I train. Can I do that? It won’t disturb anything, I promise.”

Jonas thought about it for a while, and he finally said “Yes, you can, as long as it doesn’t distract you. Anyways, please join us.” He took Austin’s hand. “You can take a seat around there, where your friend is sitting.”

It took me a while to realize Jonas was talking to me. I peered in the direction he was pointing at. I could spot Lisa. She was in a white blouse -with ruffles on the neck- and black trousers. Her beautiful brown hair was loose. She was sitting exactly on the seat behind the goal. _How did he know I’m friends with Lisa? Creepy._

“Hey,” I greeted Lisa.

“Hello, Bel and Mimi. Sit down.” She patted on the two seats to her right. “I saved two for you guys. Oh look, Austin is there!”

“Everyone,” The coach said in a booming voice. “We’ve got another famous guest here, besides Leon Mueller.” He placed his hand on Austin’s shoulder. “This is Austin Neuer, the best goalkeeper in the world’s son.”

Everybody gasped then clapped shortly after that.

“So, he’s late today, as you noticed. Which only mean one thing, Austin is one of the goalkeepers playing in the game after training!”

Another applause.

Jonas crouched again in front of Austin. “You don’t mind, do you? After all, you’re _his_ son. You _should_ have his talents.”

“Uh,” Austin appeared uneasy. He glanced nervously at me for approval. I gave him a thumbs-up and smiled.  “Okay.” He nodded.

“Yeeeesssss!” Everyone clapped even louder than last time.

The training resumed. Some boys are dribbling around cones and jumping over few little hurdles, while others were trying to do some other forms of training to test their skills. Austin wasn’t alone in goal, however. Two other boys quickly lined up behind him.

**_The appearance of great German goalkeepers such as Oliver Kahn and Manuel Neuer has really influenced German boys to be just like them. Being a goalie doesn’t seem like an awful shame anymore._ **

A black-haired guy, who I assumed was the goalkeeping coach, introduced himself as William to the kids.

“There are three of you, I see… You will fight for two places in the junior team, alright? We will assess you for a week before one of you is eliminated. Got it?”

“Okay.”

Unlike Jonas and Elena, William didn’t show a particular delight or surprise at finding out about the presence of Austin.  In no time, the goalkeepers’ training started. Saving practice.

Austin put his teddy bear behind the net and put on his gloves. He bent his knees, spread his arms as wide as he could on both sides and focused on the ball in front of William. William kicked the ball to Austin’s right. Austin bent his right leg sideways and pushed his left leg off the ground to make a dive. He held his arms above his head as the tips of his fingers touched the oncoming ball and flicked it away.

“Saved!”  William clapped his hands. “I can see your father in you, boy, and not just in appearance. He was staring at Austin’s blue eyes. Some of the people who watched the save gave Austin their applause as well.

“Danke.”  Austin’s cheeks turned a light shade of red.

“Remember that being Manuel Neuer’s son doesn’t guarantee you a place in this team. So, one save isn’t enough. I will treat everyone the same way, and I _will_ eventually know who is the most talented of you three.”

Austin said nothing. He walked slowly and positioned himself behind the taller blond-haired boy.

“You’re Austin? Austin Neuer?” The blondie asked.

Austin nodded.

“No way. No way.” The blondie just stood there with his eyes drifting from Austin’s head to toe, then back at Austin’s head. “I’m Jack, and I’m a _really_ big fan of your dad. Your dad rocks, man! I really want to be just like him. I have his posters all over my room! I have lots of Bayern and Germany National Team jerseys with his name and number on them! That’s why I begged my mom and dad to train me as a goalkeeper. Nice save, by the way. And tell your dad he has to meet me. I want to interview him. I have lots and lots of questions to ask him. Anyways, you’re _lucky_ you’ve got your dad’s talent, and you can train with him every day. I bet you that you’ll be this team’s number one goalkeeper, while I and that red-haired boy there would fight for backup goalie. You better wish me luck.”

Austin didn’t have time to respond, because it was Jack’s turn to try to make a save. Jack failed and returned behind Austin and a red-haired boy. It was Austin’s turn to go again.

Austin got into his usual position taught by Manu and made another save by diving to the left.

“Excellent!” William applauded.

“You know,” Lisa spoke. “Austin is brilliant for a four-year-old.  Two spot kicks in a row aren’t just saved because of Lady Luck. Does he practice with Manuel every day?”

“Well, yeah. But he also does have shooting practice.”

“Wow! That’s actually better than just saving practice. He can be an outfield player too, then.”

I smiled, hiding the fact that I told Manu to let Austin do more shooting practice than saving practice because Austin was _supposed_ to be a striker.

And so, the time went on. Austin saved eight more shots and conceded three before Jonas blew the whistle.

“Alright, boys! It’s game time! I’m going to divide you into two teams. Some of you might be on the bench because there are more than twenty-two of you.” A pause. “Austin, come here and take a white bib!” Jonas handed Austin the white piece of material to wear. Austin put it on.

More names were called.  “Leon, white team!”

Leon ran towards Austin, who was standing ready at his goal, and nudged the smaller boy on the shoulder.

“So, Austin. What’s up, mate? Long time no talk.”

“Last time we talked was yesterday.” Austin gave a hearty laugh.

Leon noticed Teddy, which was now sitting at the bottom left corner _inside_ the net. “What’s up with the teddy bear?”

That sight of the doll disturbingly reminded me of the time when I watched a video of a 5-year-old Manu who lifted his _teddy bear_ from the _bottom left corner_ _of the goal_ and ran with it when he conceded a goal. Strange. _Austin has never watched that video, as far as I know._ I shuddered. _Did Manu show that video to him without me knowing? Or…or it’s just…that this whole Dad-son relationship just got into a whole new level?_

“It’s for luck.”

Leon shook his head. “You’re so childish that I forgot I’m one year older than you. Anyways, I’m in your team! We’re safe. We’re going to win. I’m gonna score a lot while you’ll keep a clean sheet. Relax.” Leon placed his hand on Austin’s chest.

“Don’t underestimate them.” Austin was glaring at the opposite team’s members like a hawk.

“Come on, Austin. Calm down.”

“Leon, go. The coach is looking at you.”

Leon guffawed and swaggered back to the halfway line. “Let me do the coin toss. I’m the captain!”

“We’re doing _rock paper scissors_.” Jonas smirked.

“What? Nein!”  Leon sighed. He was standing in front of Jack, who happened to be the captain on the opposition team.

“Rock, paper, scissors!”

Paper by William vs. Rock by Leon. William won.

“Red team starts!”

Jonas blew the whistle again, and the game had officially started. Meanwhile, Miranda started crying due to all the noise that the boys had made on the pitch.

******************************

“Peeeeeep! It’s over!” Jonas announced.

“Yeeeessss!” Leon jumped happily and lifted little Austin up in the air. “Weeee woooooonnnn!”

Austin punched his hand in the air and screamed “Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!”

Leon placed Austin back on the grass and sat beside him. “If it weren’t because of your excellent saves and you tackling the strikers outside the box like three times, we would’ve been doomed. I mean it, really. You were amazing, and the score couldn’t have been much closer. 4-0! If you hadn’t kept those damn good players out of the penalty box and didn’t save those shots, we could’ve lost! They were playing so well!”

“Well, we did okay, too .You did a hat-trick.” Austin ignored the compliment.

“I know, and your teddy bear really did work its luck on you.”

Austin stood up. “No, I didn’t bring it for luck.”

“What? You _lied_ to me?

“I did. I didn’t want to tell you, at first. I’d sound childish.” Austin sighed. “I’m just…bringing it because I don’t want to be alone in goal. He’s my favorite.”  He started to walk away.

“No, Austin! Hang on!” Leon grabbed Austin by his shoulder. “So, that wasn’t…a charm or something?”

“No.”

Leon’s blue eyes widened. “No way! Austin…Austin…” He was shaking Austin’s shoulders now. “You were outstanding! I just…I just… Oh God, Austin. Sometimes, I forget that your daddy is Manuel Neuer, the best goalie in the world. No wonder you are so _bloody good!_ Going outside the bloody box, oh _good Lord_ , I thought you were crazy! I thought you’d concede a goal or something. But you didn’t. Clean sheet! Nice saves! Nice risk-taking! To sum things up, you’re basically a mini version of your own dad! Ah, I should’ve known this sooner… ” He exhaled, chuckled, and hugged Austin. “I like you a lot, you know. You’re like my little brother.”

“I like you too.” Austin placed both of his hands on top of Leon’s curly hair for support. Then, he tiptoed and kissed Leon on the cheek.

“Aw. Come on, let’s get to our moms.”

“Wait!” William and Jonas ran behind the boys. “We just want to say congratulations to both of you. You guys gave us the best first impression out of the whole bunch, and we hope that the good impression will stay that way. We would really love to have you on the team, Leon and Austin, but you have to keep improving. You have a bright future ahead of you.”

******************************

Austin, Miranda and I were back in the car.

“Once again, congrats on your first game, baby. Miranda and I are proud. And I’m sure Dad is, too.”

Austin couldn’t stop beaming while gazing dreamily out the window.

 “Brother, brother!” Miranda grinned and put her hands together as if to clap.

“I just wished Dad was here.”

“Me too, dear. Me too. Don’t worry, I have recorded your game on my camera and Dad can watch it when he gets home from training.”

“Really? Can I watch it too?”

“Of course.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

“No problem.”

“Mom,”

“Yeah?”

“Is it true what those people in practice said?”

“What did they say?”

“That Dad is the best goalkeeper in the world?”

“Ah, yes. Of course he is. In fact, he might even be the best goalkeeper in history. He’s revolutionary, you know. He redefines goalkeeping. Now, goalkeepers are more important and have evolved to who they are today because of him. He’s not only good at saving, but he is good at being the leader of the defense and goes out of the box when he really needs to get a potentially dangerous ball off the striker. This is why he is also called a _sweeper keeper_. He goes out of his goal and _sweeps_ up the ball if the opponent manages to break the defensive line –like a libero- while at the same time he has the position of a goalkeeper. Sometimes, he also goes beyond the halfway line. What you did in the game was roughly what your Dad usually does on the pitch. I can tell that you’re a natural when it comes to these things.”

“Wow, I’m a natural? That’s cool.” He appeared to be impressed with himself. “Wait, you said that Dad goes beyond the halfway line? That’s crazy.”

“He _is_ crazy, alright. But he’s the best goalkeeper there is.”

“Then, how come he has never told me that he’s the best in the world?”

“Because he’s a modest person. He’s also self-critical. He always thinks that he has to improve on everything, and that he’s not perfect. I think you should know that by now. I would like to tell you something.”

“What is it?”

“That I don’t doubt you’ve made the right decision to be a goalkeeper. You’re the next Manuel Neuer.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going on my vacation for three weeks, so chapter 17 is delayed until around the end of August.   
> Feel free to leave kudos/comment on my fic! Enjoyyy <3


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